Massaman Lamb Curry with Sweet Potato

Thai food is one of those few foods that I still don't feel guilty about ordering for delivery when I'm too lazy to cook (sushi is the other big one), because I know they'll do a better job than me. I should just enjoy that state, but for some reason, I still feel the need to try to improve my Thai skills. After a couple of months in Australia, I decided I needed some local cookbooks to better acquaint me with the local produce, seafood, and cuts of meat. Spirit House popped up a few times in my review of cookbooks and I was drawn to the fact that that was also the name of where we got married. So far, the cookbook seems very accessible for a Thai book, often blending Australian ingredients with Thai flavours. Massaman curry is generally made with beef and potatoes, but lamb and sweet potato make a great variation (not to mention I had both on hand!). The recipe called for lamb leg, but I had stewing lamb (from the shoulder), so I significantly increased the cook time (think 2 hours for the first simmer) to ensure that my meat was perfectly tender. I found the sauce was a little on the thin side (although the coconut milk was also very thin) which seems to be the style here so I reduced further (actually a little too much!). The notes say making this ahead improves the flavor, so I did so. I haven't made it multiple times though so I can't compare! The end result was just as satisfying though as I hoped it would be. I'm eager to try more from this book.

Two years ago: Duck Burgers with Shiitake Mushroom Ketchup
Three years ago: Duck Stew with Black Cardamom and Cherries
Four years ago: Lamb Stir-Fry
Five years ago: Celebration Yellow Rice
Six years ago: Stuffed Zucchini

Massaman Lamb Curry with Sweet Potato (from Spirit House)

Ingredients
2 tbsp vegetable oil
500g lamb leg, diced (see notes if using shoulder)
1 large onion, chopped
1 large sweet potato, cut into bite-sized dice
2 cups coconut milk
2 tbsp Massaman Curry Paste
1/2 cup roasted, unsalted peanuts
2 tbsp palm sugar
2 tbsp fish sauce
1/4 cup tamarind water
Cooked jasmine rice

1. Heat oil in wok and sear the meat.
2. Add onion and cook for about half a minute.
3. Add enough water to cover, bring to a boil and simmer 15 minutes. (If doing the longer simmer, you'll want to cover.)
4. Add the sweet potatoes, cover the wok and simmer until partially cooked, 5 minutes.
5. Strain out meat and vegetables, reserving the broth to thin the sauce later if necessary (it wasn't for me).
6. Pour thick coconut cream from top of milk into the now empty wok, stir in curry paste, and cook for 5 minutes.
7. Mix in sweet potato, meat, and peanuts. Stir in rest of coconut milk, sugar, fish sauce, and tamarind, stirring to dissolve sugar.
8. Simmer until potatoes are cooked, about 10 minutes. Serve with rice.

Massaman Curry Paste
Ingredients
10g dried red chiles
2 cardamom seeds, roasted
1 1/4 tsp cumin seeds, roasted
1 1/2 tsp coriander seeds, roasted
1 1/2 tsp shrimp paste, roasted
1/4 tsp whole black peppercorns
2 cloves
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 stalk lemongrass, finely sliced
1 tbsp peeled and finely chopped galangal
1/4 cup finely chopped garlic
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion

1. Soak chilies in hot water for 30 minutes. Remove from water and chop finely.
2. Combine roasted spices, peppercorns, cloves and cinnamon and pound in a mortar and pestle. (I cheated and used a mini food processor.)
3. Add remaining ingredients and process to a paste, using some of the soaking water if necessary.

Oyster Mushroom Salad

This salad is full of Thai flavor and rich earthiness.

One year ago: Roasted Cauliflower and Hazelnut Salad
Two years ago: Grilled Sausages with Celery Root Salad and Hazelnuts
Three years ago: Vanilla Pudding
Four years ago: Red Pesto Penne with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes and Cheese

Oyster Mushroom Salad (from Seductions of Rice)

Ingredients
1/2 lb portobello mushrooms, cleaned and coarsely chopped
1/2 lb oyster mushrooms, cleaned and coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp sugar
1 - 2 tsp crumbled dried red chile or chile pepper flakes
3 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp finely sliced shallots
1 1/2 cups loosely packed mint, coarsely chopped
tender bibb or other lettuce leaves

1. Place 2" of water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Add mushrooms, partially cover, and cook until tender, 4 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Place garlic and sugar in mortar and pound to paste. Add chiles and pound to combine. Add lime juice and fish sauce and blend well. (You can also do this in a mini food processor.)
3. Place mushrooms in a bowl, add shallots, pour on dressing and toss.
4. Add chopped mint and toss. This may be made up to 2 hours ahead of time.
5. Line a serving platter with lettuce and mound salad on top. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steamed Fish Curry

Our seafood box seems to be increasing the amount of fish they give us lately. Given that we typically do small portion sizes of meat, getting through 1.25 lbs of fish a week has been increasingly challenging (especially with the freezer back log). This simple creamy curry was a great way to use up 1/3 of our fish from last week. So far, my new Thai book has been a bit intimidating to dive into, but the results have been worth it. This one (along with all of the recipes in the book) calls for making your own red curry paste, but I'm going to assume that you can get by with commercial paste on this one and will skip including that part below.

One year ago: Chicken Fricassee
Two years ago: Chipped Beets and Beet Greens
Three years ago: Cappuccino Fudge Cheesecake
Four years ago: Chocolate Layer Cake

Steamed Fish Curry (from Thai Food)

Ingredients
200g fish fillets - whiting, cod or perch (I used cod)
pinch of salt
a little lime juice
2 tbsp fish sauce
pinch of palm sugar
1/2 cup coconut cream
3 tbsp red curry paste
1 small egg, lightly beaten
6 kaffir lime leaves, finely shredded
handful of Thai basil leaves
1 tbsp thick coconut cream
a few long red chilies, julienned


1. Wash fish in water with a little salt and a squeeze of lime juice. Drain, pat dry, and slice finely.
2. In a bowl, season fish with fish sauce and sugar, stirring with a spoon.
3. Gradually work in coconut cream. If it separates, add a little ice cold water and stir.
4. Fold in curry paste.
5. Stir in egg and finish with lime leaves.
6. Line a steamer basket with parchment paper, line with basil leaves, and add curry. Steam over moderate heat for 15 - 30 minutes or until curry has set.
7. Garnish with thick coconut cream and red chilies and serve.

Stir-Fried Beef in Oyster Sauce

Aside from a bit of a marinade time, this is a very quick and flavorful dish. With a little planning ahead, it's a perfect weeknight dish. I think it would also work well with some greens tossed in to wilt.

One year ago: Vegetarian Dry-Fried Vegetables
Two years ago: Spring Vegetable Pasta
Three years ago: Blueberry Crumb Bars

Stir-Fried Beef in Oyster Sauce (from The Cook's Encyclopedia of Thai Cooking)

Ingredients
1 lb rump steak
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp chopped ginger
225g mixed mushrooms
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp sugar
4 scallions, cut into short lengths

1. Place steak in freeze for 30 - 40 minutes until firm then slice on diagonal into long thin strips.
2. Mix together soy sauce and cornstarch in large bowl. Add steak, cover with plastic wrap and marinate for 1 - 2 hours.
3. Heat half the oil in a wok. Add garlic and ginger and cook for 1 - 2 minutes or until fragrant.
4. Drain steak and add to wok. Cook, stirring frequently, until steak is browned, 1 - 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.
5. Heat remaining oil in wok. Add mushrooms and stir-fry over medium heat until golden brown.
6. Return steak to wok. Add oyster sauce and sugar. Toss until combined.
7. Stir in scallions and serve.

Lemongrass Pork

This delicately flavoured, simple dish comes together quickly (even if you do the 30 minute marinade). Serve over rice noodles with some veggies on the side for an easy, elegant dinner.

One year ago: Crisp Roasted Chicken with Chickpeas
Two years ago: Fudgy Mocha Cake
Three years ago: Sausage and Goat Cheese Macaroni

Lemongrass Pork (from The Cook's Encyclopedia of Thai Cooking)
Ingredients
1 1/2 lb pork loin, cut into bite-sized slices
2 lemongrass stalks, finely chopped
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1 tsp salt
12 black peppercorns, coarsely crushed
2 tbsp peanut oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 red chiles, chopped
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
1/4 cup roasted peanuts, chopped

1. Put pork in bowl with lemongrass, scallions, salt, and pepper. Mix well and let marinate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat a wok, add the oil, and swirl. Add pork with marinade and stir-fry for 3 minutes until browned.
3. Add garlic and chiles and stir-fry for 5 - 8 minutes over medium heat until cooked through and tender.
4. Add sugar, fish sauce, and peanuts and serve.

Dry Beef Curry with Peanut and Lime

This whole wedding planning thing has severely cut into my cookbook acquisitions and I've been feeling like I'm in a bit of a rut. One thing I've struggled with is my love of Thai food, but my lack of enjoyment with the Thai-focused books that I do have. Despite Real Thai coming highly recommended, the recipes just aren't what I think about when I think of Thai food. The Complete Asian Cookbook that I have just isn't as approachable as I'd like. August has a Thai Cooking book that he likes, but I'd never really given it a fair shot. I decided to change that this week. So far, so good. The recipe below could be simplified a lot by relying on a pre-made red Thai curry paste (although you can easily make this one while the beef simmers and you should note that it makes much, much more than you need for this recipe). The end result was a dry beef curry, tender and full of flavor from the curry paste and peanut butter. I thought it could do with just a little less lime juice at the end, so if your limes are juicy, you might want to be careful.

One year ago: Stewed Radishes with Tamarind
Two years ago: Rhubarb Lamb Stew
Three years ago: Jalapeno-Cheddar Scones

Dry Beef Curry with Peanut and Lime (The Cook's Encyclopedia of Thai Cooking)
Ingredients
1 can coconut milk
2 lb stewing steak, chopped into small bite-sized pieces
1 1/4 cup beef stock
2 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
juice of 2 limes
Curry paste
2 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
seeds from 6 green cardamom pods
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tsp paprika
zest of 1 mandarin orange, finely grated
5 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 piece lemongrass, shredded
3 garlic cloves, minced
3/4" piece galangal, finely chopped
4 shallots, finely chopped
3/4" square shrimp paste
50g cilantro root or stem, chopped
juice of 1/2 lime
2 tbsp vegetable oil

1. Strain coconut milk into bowl, retaining thicker milk in sieve.
2. Pour thin coconut milk into large heavy pan and scrape in half of thicker milk. Reserve remaining. Add chopped beef, pour in beef stock, and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 50 minutes.
3. Dry-fry curry paste seeds for 1 - 2 minutes. The book suggests then working together ingredients in a mortar, I went with a combination of spice grinder and food processor. Pick what works for you until you have a paste.
4. Strain beef, reserving cooking liquid.
5. Place a cup of cooking liquid in a wok. Stir in 2 - 3 tbsp of curry paste. Boil until liquid has evaporated.
6. Stir in reserved coconut milk, peanut butter, and beef. Simmer uncovered for 15 - 20 minutes.
7. Stir in lime juice and serve.

Stir-Fried Squid with Chili and Cilantro

If your squid (or baby octopus) is already cleaned, the slowest part of this dish is picking the cilantro. This ones packs a lot of flavor in it and is a great weeknight dinner.

One year ago: Quick-Braised Pork Chops with Spring Greens
Three years ago: Cherry Tomato Penne al Arrabbiata

Stir-Fried Squid with Chili and Cilantro (from Mighty Spice)
Ingredients
1 lb 9 ounces baby squid, dressed
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp chili flakes
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
juice of 1/2 lime
1 large handful cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

1. Cut squid tentacles from squid. Cut open tubes.
2. Heat oil in a wok over medium heat. Add chili flakes and garlic and stir-fry until fragrant, 30 seconds.
3. Add squid and stir-fry 2 - 3 minutes until cooked through.
4. Pour oyster sauce, fish sauce, and lime juice over and stir-fry 30 seconds until combined.
5. Stir in cilantro and serve.

Rice Noodles with Beef and Broccoli in Cantonese-Style Gravy

Although this came from my Thai cookbook, it has a decidedly Chinese taste to it. The original recipe calls for a pound of noodles which seemed like a bit much for the amount of beef and broccoli. I would highly recommend reducing to what you think works for you.

One year ago: Red Beef Curry with Squash
Two years ago: Multi-Grain Pasta with Lamb and Butternut Squash
Three years ago: Double Broccoli Quinoa

Rice Noodles with Beef and Broccoli in Cantonese-Style Gravy (from Real Thai)

Ingredients
3 tbsp vegetable oil
4 cups cooked rice noodles (see header note to reduce)
2 tbsp coarsely chopped garlic
1/2 lb beef, thinly sliced across the grain into 2"x1" strips
3 cups cut-up Chinese broccoli or small broccoli florets
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp brown bean sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 3 tbsp water
1 cup chicken stock

1. Heat wok over medium heat. Add 2 tbsp of oil. Add noodles and stir-fry 1 minute to separate. Transfer to platter.
2. Add remaining 1 tbsp oil to wok. Add garlic and toss until golden, 30 seconds.
3. Add beef and stir-fry until it changes color, 1 minute.
4. Add broccoli and stir-fry until bright green and shiny, 30 seconds.
5. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, bean sauce, and sugar. Toss well.
6. Add cornstarch mixture and stock. Simmer until sauce thickens, 2 - 3 minutes.
7. Pour sauce over noodles, toss, and serve.

Crab Cakes with Cilantro Pesto

If you already have you crab picked, this makes for a quick and easy dinner. You could save even more time by skipping on making the pesto and just adding equivalent amounts of cilantro, garlic, and pepper to the mix (Or you could make a large batch of pesto for other recipes and to freeze for later). The crab cake mixture is rather moist, so be careful when dredging in flour. The green color of the cakes is a bit odd, but the taste is worth it.

One year ago: Pork Tenderloin with Crusted Mediterranean Herbs
Two years ago: Stir-fried Orange Beef

Crab Cakes with Cilantro Pesto (from Real Thai)
Ingredients
Sweet-Hot Garlic Sauce
1/2 lb cooked lump crabmeat
1/2 lb ground pork
2 tbsp Cilantro pesto
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
1 cup flour
2 tbsp vegetable oil
handful of fresh cilantro
3 fresh red chee fah chilies, cut into long thin strips or 9 long, thin sweet red pepper strips

1. In a medium bowl, gently combine crabmeat, pork, pesto, egg, fish sauce, soy sauce, salt, and sugar. Mix well.
2. Put flour on a plate.
3. Shape crab-pork mixture into small cakes, Dip each cake in flour to lightly coat.
4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add crab cakes and saute turning once until golden brown and cooked, 5 minutes per side.
5. Transfer cakes to serving platter and garnish with cilantro and chili. Serve with dipping sauce.

Cilantro Pesto
1 tbsp whole white of black peppercorns
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro roots or leaves and stems
1/2 cup coarsely chopped garlic

1. Grinder peppercorns.
2. Combine pepper, cilantro, and garlic in blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.

Sweet-Hot Garlic Sauce

I developed a minor addiction to Thai dipping sauce after being introduced to it by some Australian friends. Who knew it was so easy to make though?

One year ago: Spicy Red Cabbage with Apples and Carrots
Two years ago: Red Lentil, Tomato, and Coconut Soup
Three years ago: Penne with Potatoes and Arugula

Sweet-Hot Garlic Sauce (from Real Thai)

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup white vinegar
2 tbsp finely minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp chili-garlic sauce or coarsely ground dried red chili (or sambal oelek)

1. In a small heavy saucepan, combine sugar, water, vinegar, and salt. Bring to a rolling boil. Stir, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes until mixture thickens.
2. Remove from heat, stir in chili garlic sauce, and let cool to room temperature.

Sauteed Mushrooms with Pork and White Pepper

Dinner in 15 minutes including prep? Yes, please. Even better, the flavors here work great with the earthy combination of mushrooms, garlic, and shallots. The fish sauce adds a nice bit of saltiness to the mix as well. Dinner was looking a bit monotone, so I wilted in some spinach at the last stage. It greatly improved the look of the dish and extra vegetables are always good, right?

One year ago: Wasabi-Ginger Mayonnaise
Two years ago: Gorgonzola Cheese Shells
Three years ago: Broccoli and Roasted Tomato Pseudo-Frittata

Sauteed Mushrooms with Pork and White Pepper (from Real Thai)
Ingredients
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp thinly sliced garlic
2 tbsp thinly sliced shallot
1 small onion, thinly sliced (1/2 cup)
1/4 lb pork, sliced into thin strips
1/2 lb mushrooms, cut lengthwise into bite-sized pieces
fresh spinach (optional)
2 tbsp fish sauce
3 tbsp water
1/2 tsp freshly ground white pepper

1. Heat work over medium-high heat. Add oil and swirl to coat.
2. Add garlic and stir-fry until fragrant and golden, 30 seconds.
3. Add shallot and stir-fry until it begins to wilt, 1 minute.
4. Add pork and stir-fry until no longer pink, 2 minutes.
5. Add mushrooms, toss to coat with oil and cook for 1 minute.
6. Add handfuls of spinach if desired and fish sauce, water, and pepper.
7. Cover to wilt spinach if using, otherwise stir-fry for 1 minute.
8. Serve.

Mussamun Curry with Beef, Potatoes, and Peanuts

Last week I had a revelation that I don't cook nearly enough Thai food and decided to fix that problem. This week has been devoted to Thai which has only left me wondering why I didn't delve into this cookbook sooner. This recipe takes a bit of time and a bit of investment in coconut milk and cream, but it could easily be scaled down into something a bit more reasonable. The curry paste lends it a bit of an Indian/Thai mix, but the recipe could easily be used with a pre-made curry paste as well. The most beautiful thing about this recipe though is how tender the coconut milk makes the beef. Also, the flavors only improve the next day after they've had some time to meld.

One year ago: Boston Cream Pie
Two years ago: Cocoa Brownies
Three years ago: Hockey and Baking

Mussamun Curry with Beef, Potatoes, and Peanuts (from Real Thai)
Ingredients
5 cups coconut milk
2 lb boneless beef, cut into 2" chunks
1 cup coconut cream
1/3 cup Mussamun Curry Paste
3 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar
3 tbsp Tamarind Liquid
12 whole cardamom pods
6 cinnamon sticks
2 lbs potatoes, peeled and cut into 2" chunks
1 large onion, cut lengthwise into thick wedges
1/2 cup dry-roasted peanuts
2 tbsp lime juice

1. In a large saucepan, bring coconut milk to a gentle boil over medium heat. Add beef chunks and simmer until tender, about 1 hour. (Note she has you add the potato rather late in the recipe. I was running behind on the curry paste and ended up adding it here somewhat around the 1 hour market to give the potato extra time to cook.)
2. In a small skillet over medium heat, bring coconut cream to a gentle boil. Cook for 6 - 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. It will become fragrant and thicken.
3. Add curry paste to cream and stir to dissolve. Cook for 3 - 4 minutes until it has a pleasing aroma.
4. Add curry paste to beef and stir well.
5. Add fish sauce, sugar, tamarind, cardamom, cinnamon, and potatoes (if you haven't already). Simmer 10 minutes.
6. Add onions and peanuts and simmer until potatoes are cooked, about 5 minutes (!).
7. Add lime juice to sharpen taste and serve.

Mussamun Curry Paste
1/3 cup dried red chilies
2 tbsp whole cumin seeds
1 tsp whole coriander seeds
1 tsp whole peppercorns
1 tsp whole cloves
1 tsp ground cardamom (I used whole)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground mace
1 tsp ground nutmeg
3 stalks lemongrass
1 tbsp finely chopped galanga or ginger
2 tsp salt
1/2 cup coarsely chopped garlic
1/2 cup coarsely chopped shalot
1 tbsp shrimp paste

1. Stem chiles, discards seeds, coarsely chop, and place in bowl. Add warm water and soak for 20 minutes. Drain.
2. Toast whole spices and set aside.
3. When cool, grind whole spices in spice grinder.
4. Toast ground spices and add to freshly ground whole spices.
5. Trim lemongrass stalks and finely chop.
6. Finally, using a method of your choice (food processor, blender, or mortar), grind to a paste.

Thai Bok Choy Stir-Fry

Surprisingly, my Thai book doesn't have many vegetable recipes that don't contain meat as well. While looking for a side dish, this complicated maters a bit. This recipe originally calls for water spinach, but spinach, bok choy, yu choy, baby bok choy, and broccoli rabe are all suggested substitutions. I went with baby bok choy. I didn't have Thai brown bean sauce, so I used a Chinese chile bean sauce that was sitting in the fridge. It gave the dish a little bit extra kick, but that wasn't a bad thing at all. Unless I can find some more Thai vegetable dishes, we may be eating a lot of this one.

One year ago: Chicken Thighs with a Peanut Sauce
Two years ago: City Chicken
Three years ago: Cauliflower, Chickpea, and Tomato Couscous

Thai Bok Choy Stir-Fry (from Real Thai; originally Water Spinach in Flames)

Ingredients
2 lbs greens of your choice (see above)
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp brown bean sauce (dao jiow)
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp ground pepper

1. Trim greens if needed and coarsely chop. (If there are thicker stems, keep them separate.)
2. In a small bowl, combine fish sauce, bean sauce, and sugar.
3. Heat wok over high heat. Add oil and swirl to coat. When smoking hot, add garlic and toss. (If using thicker stems add now and cook 1 minute.)
4. Add fish sauce mixture and mix with oil.
5. Add greens. Toss until it begins to wilt.
6. Transfer to serving platter with cooking liquid. Serve hot or warm.

Burmese-Style Pork Curry with Fresh Ginger

I came to a realization last weekend that although I like Thai and Mexican food very much, I haven't cooked it nearly often enough lately. Determined to fix that, I decided to give this recipe a shot. This recipe was so impressive that next week will be a mostly Thai week. The cooking time for the pork is a little short in this recipe, so you might want to plan on giving it a bit more time. Other than that small issue, the flavor on this is outstanding. Best of all, when eating, the little bits of shallots seemed to be hiding bacon and a bit of heat.

One year ago: Perfumed Basmati Rice with Black Cardamom Pods
Two years ago: Brisket Tacos
Three years ago: Peanut Butter and Nutella Brownies

Burmese-Style Pork Curry with Fresh Ginger (from Real Thai)

Ingredients
1/4 cup finely slivered, fresh ginger
12 small dried red chiles
2 tbsp thinly sliced lemongrass
2 tsp finely diced galanga
1 tbsp shrimp paste
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 lb pork, some fat attached, cut into chunks
1/4 lb fresh bacon (pork belly), cut into chunks
2 1/2 cups water
2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1/4 cup thinly sliced shallot
2 tbsp minced garlic
2 tbsp tamarind liquid

1. Place ginger in small bowl. Add warm water to cover and set aside.
2. Stem chiles and coarsely chop. Add to food processor along with lemongrass and galanga. Puree. (Note the book suggests a mortar and pestle, but I think this is a good time to pull out the food processor.)
3. Add shrimp paste to chile mixture and puree.
4. Add brown sugar to child mixture and puree until you have a dark brown, grainy mixture.
5. Place meat in a large, heavy bottomed saucepan and add curry paste (chile mixture). Stir to cover meat and heat over low heat.
6. Cook until meat has changed color, rendered some fat, and paste is fragrant, stirring occasionally. About 20 minutes.
7. Mix together water, turmeric, and soy sauce and add to pot. Simmer over low heat until meat is tender and surrounded by a dark, thick sauce, at least 40 minutes.
8. Add shallot and garlic to curry.
9. Drain ginger and add soaking water to pan.
10. Place ginger in mortar and pound to soften slightly. Add ginger to pan and stir to mix together.
11. Add tamarind. Adjust tamarind, sugar, and fish sauce as needed. Cook long enough to heat through and remove from heat.
12. Let stand for 20 minutes and serve warm.

Thai-Style Ground Pork with Chiles and Basil

The original recipe calls for ground turkey or dark ground chicken, but I opted for more flavourful pork. I also doubled the spice level to end up with a very quick dish perfect for a weeknight. Serve with rice or lettuce wraps.

Thai-Style Ground Pork with Chiles and Basil (from Cook This Now)

Ingredients
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
1/4 finely grated lime zest
1 tsp lime juice
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp peanut oil
1 tbsp finely chopped ginger
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 scallion, white and light green finely chopped, greens reserved for garnish
225g ground pork
1/4 chopped Thai or regular basil

1. In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, fish sauce, lime zest, lime juice, and sugar.
2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ginger, garlic, jalapeno, and chopped scallion. Cook until slightly softened, 1 minute.
3. Add meat and cook until no longer pink, 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Stir in soy sauce mixture and cook for a minute or so.
5. Remove from heat, stir in basil, and top with sliced scallion greens.

Red Beef Curry with Squash

This is a perfect weeknight dinner dish. Quick, easy, and full of flavour. Best of all, it used up a squash that's been sitting on the counter-top for entirely too long!

One year ago: Multi-Grain Pasta with Lamb and Butternut Squash
Two years ago: Double Broccoli Quinoa

Red Beef Curry with Squash (from Real Thai)

Ingredients
1/2 cup coconut cream
1/4 cup red curry paste
450g lean beef, thinly sliced into strips 2" by 1"
3 cups coconut milk
900g kabocha pumpkin or hard winter squash, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup fresh Thai basil or other basil leaves

1. In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, warm coconut cream over medium heat until it boils gently. Cook for 6 - 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add curry paste and stir to dissolve into coconut cream. Cook 1 - 2 minutes.
3. Add beef and stir-fry to coat evenly with paste. Cook 2 minutes.
4. Increase heat and add coconut milk, pumpkin, fish sauce, sugar, and salt. Stir well. Lower heat to maintain boil and cook 8 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. When beef is done and pumpkin is tender, stir in 1/4 cup basil leaves. Remove from heat and scatter remaining 1/4 cup basil leaves on top.