Thai - part 2

The second dish I tried making was the Thai Massaman Curry - also from Blue Elephant that I picked up at Coop.  I actually enjoyed this one better. We used lamb though you could also use chicken.  The Turkish grocery store has good prices on lamb (I bought ours at Coop since I was there though).

The only problem I found with this recipe is that it sort of threw ingredients at you in the directions. We liked it though and I will definitely make it again.  These two dishes are good for when you are having friends over and want to provide a little variety in the same theme

What you need:

1 packet of the Massaman curry
500g lamb/chicken
600 ml coconut cream
130g cooked potato - I used the raclette potatoes again
1 1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp vinegar
pinch of salt
1/2 Tbsp fish sauce
2 Tbsp sliced ginger (I use the thinly sliced ginger you can get near the sushi ingredients)
2 bay leaves
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
3 Tbsp cashew nuts (roasted peanuts work as well)
Oil for frying

Slice the lamb (or chicken) and quarter your potatoes. Put some oil in a wok or other deep pan and heat it. I used peanut oil.  In batches, deep fry the lamb and potatoes. When done, drain on paper towels and cover to keep warm.

Put the vegetable oil (I used the sunflower oil) in a pan and add the curry paste, garlic shallot and ginger (this is where it added ingredients so I just put in a tbsp of garlic and 1/2 an onion). Stir fry for a couple minutes.

Add the cream, lamb and potatoes. Bring to a boil and add everything but the nuts.  Simmer until cooked through.

Garnish with the nuts and remove the bay leaves. Serve with rice.

Thai Dishes - Part 1 of 3

The next two posts will be more of a review.  The last is a salad and dressing that will compliment these dishes or is also very good on its own.

This first one is a Thai Green Curry packet from Coop - Blue Elephant.  These each serve about 4 people, but I made both so there was a variety - and I was hoping for leftovers of something for lunch the next day :)

Oh - one more thing - these packets are also in English

What you need:
1 Thai Green Curry packet (70g or 50g for a less spicy curry.  I put in the 50 but still thought it was spicy. No one else did).
400 ml coconut cream. Not to be confused with coconut milk
250g chicken breast (I bought the already cubed chicken to save time)
2 kaffir lime leaves - optional (try the Asian store or the Thai Shop)
70g eggplant or cherry tomato (I used some of both).  The Asian store may have baby eggplants (look like large peppercorn) that are really good in this dish. (I used regular eggplant and cubed it)
1 Tbsp fish sauce (you can add 1 tbsp soy sauce + a pinch of salt if you don't like fish sauce)

1 Tbsp sugar
1 large chili (also left out)
5g fresh basil
vegetable oil
180 ml water

Heat 1 Tbsp veg. oil in a pan and add the curry packet. Stir fry until mixed well then lower the heat.

Add the coconut cream and 180ml of water. Bring to a boil

Add everything but the chili and basil.  Simmer (20-30 min) until cooked through and garnish with the chili and fresh basil.  I served it with Basmati rice.

Overall we enjoyed this recipe. Making it with the other curry dish was not that difficult and definitely doable. I had made the salad earlier in the day though. We would definitely buy the packet and make it again.