Kitchen Attempts

My mom just got back from a convention in Bangkok and instead of bringing home clothes or shoes from Chatuchak or MBK, she brought with her an assortment of food related items.  The original food enthusiast of the family told me that she purchased a heavy-duty mortar and pestle made of stone (looked like cement to me! LOL!) that caused her to pay for excess baggage. Believe me, this is a very rare occurrence for my frugal mom. She must have really loved that mortar and pestle to pay extra for it. That thing is serious business. It is probably 8” in diameter and could cause serious injury if mishandled. Nothing excites cooks more than hard-core kitchenware!

pounding ingredients for the curry paste in our new mortar and pestle

She also brought back loads of spices such as curry paste, kaffir lime leaves and of course, cook books.  All these reminded her of her spicy meals in Bangkok which led her to crave for some home-made chicken curry. So being the caring daughter that I am (ahem, ahem), I volunteered to prepare her curry-filled dinner.

kaffir lime leaves add a nice aroma to curry dishes

I am quite keen on eating spicy food which is why I have grown to love Thai cuisine .  I enjoy the complexity of flavors and how they balance the heat, sweetness and sourness in their dishes. So to really enjoy curry, I suggest making it from scratch and none of that store bought curry powder. ☺

spicy chicken curry. perfect for the cold weather.

Curry Paste

•    1 onion, finely chopped
•    1 stalk lemon grass
•    1 piece, thumb size ginger, peeled
•    1 tbsp. chili paste (I used sambal)
•    2 cloves garlic
•    1 tbsp. coriander seeds
•    1 tbsp. tumeric powder
•    1 tbsp. cumin powder

Blend all ingredients in a food processor or pound away on a mortar and pestle like I did. ☺

bottled thai herbs and spices are a good alternative if you can't get them fresh.

Chicken Curry

•    curry paste
•    2 tbsp. fish sauce
•    1 can coconut milk
•    2 ripe tomatoes, chopped
•    3-4 kaffir lime leaves
•    1 whole chicken, cleaned and cut
•    2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
•    1 eggplant, chopped
•    ¼ cup water
•    basil leaves (optional)

In a non-stick pan, sauté curry paste and tomatoes until tomatoes are soft.  Add coconut milk and simmer for 2 minutes.  Add in chicken, kaffir lime leaves and potatoes.  Add water and simmer on low heat, uncovered for 10-20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Stir occasionally to prevent chicken from burning. Add fish sauce and eggplant. Mix in basil leaves (optional).

Serve with steamed rice and say “Sawasdee Ka!”