When all else fails, there’s always curry to fall back on. Despite all the beautiful food you see on this blog, I do have my share of kitchen disasters (that blob of charcoal was supposed to be fried chicken).
Thai curry is my “break in case of emergency” meal – as I always have a can of coconut milk, a can of curry paste, shrimp in the freezer and miscellaneous vegetables in the refrigerator. Rice is only a one-finger trigger button away or already cooked, stored in the freezer.
Here’s what I used:
Fresh mushrooms: I love the meatiness of large King Trumpet mushrooms, but you can use fresh shiitake or even regular white mushrooms. By the way, there are quite a few mushroom recipes on Hokto’s site that I’ve developed for them…their mushrooms are organic and grown in California)
Thai curry: Comes in a can (like above), a plastic tub or envelope packet. If you buy a big tub of it, you can store unused portion in refrigerator for a few months. But I prefer to get the small cans.
Coconut milk: Which is not coco-loco (used for cocktails). Look in the Asian aisle of supermarket. If there are many different brands, shake the cans. The ones that sounds watery will be…well…watery and tasteless. Go for the cans that sounds like its full of thick liquid.
Shrimp: Tail on or off, up to you.
Vegetables: Bell peppers and fresh basil leaves (not pictured) – you can use Thai basil if you have, or just regular sweet basil is fine too.
Step 1: You’ll want to cook the curry paste just a bit, just to release the oils and the flavors. The amount of curry paste you use is totally up to you (and you can always add more in later after tasting the curry).
Step 2: Now pour in the coconut milk and whisk to incorporate the curry. This helps the curry paste break down and become smooth.
Step 3: add in the vegetables to cook for a couple of minutes. At this point, taste the curry, and if you want it more spicy, then whisk in additional curry paste.
Step 4: Now for the shrimp. cook until shrimp is cooked through.
Step 5: Throw in the basil leaves, stir and you’re done.
Serve over cooked rice.
Thai Shrimp Curry
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon cooking oil
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste (or more)
- 12 ounces coconut milk
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips
- 8 ounces fresh mushrooms (I used King Trumpet mushrooms)
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 16 basil leaves (optional)
- Cooked rice
Instructions
- Heat a skillet over medium high heat, once hot add in the cooking oil and red curry paste. Whisk for about 30 seconds. Pour in the coconut milk and whisk to combine. When it comes to a simmer, add in the mushrooms and the red peppers and continue cooking for 3 minutes. Taste and whisk in additional curry paste if you want. Add the shrimp to the curry and cook for another 2-3 minutes, until the shrimp is cooked through. Stir in the basil and serve over rice.
Notes
Find the perfect steam rice recipe here.
