Thai Green Curry
The Story
This is the curry that converted me to Thai food. Fragrant, complex, with layers of flavour that build with each bite — sweet from the coconut milk, savoury from fish sauce, aromatic from Thai basil and lime leaves. It's bright green, intensely flavoured, and surprisingly easy to make at home.
The secret is good quality curry paste. Don't skimp here. A jar of authentic Thai green curry paste will transform this dish from ordinary to extraordinary. Fry it in a little coconut cream first to bloom the aromatics, then build your curry from there. The result is restaurant-quality at a fraction of the price.
Can't find kaffir lime leaves? Use lime zest instead. Not quite the same, but it'll still be delicious. Thai basil is worth hunting down though — regular basil just doesn't have that anise-like flavour.
Ingredients
- 500g chicken thigh fillets (cut into chunks)
- 3 tablespoons Thai green curry paste
- 400ml coconut milk
- Large handful Thai basil leaves
- 100g bamboo shoots (drained)
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon palm sugar (or brown sugar)
- 4 kaffir lime leaves (torn)
- 100g Thai eggplant (quartered, or regular eggplant cubed)
- Steamed jasmine rice to serve
Method
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the thick coconut cream (from the top of the can) in a large wok or deep frying pan over medium heat. Add the curry paste and fry for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until fragrant and the oil starts to separate.
- Add the chicken and stir to coat in the paste. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the chicken starts to colour.
- Pour in the remaining coconut milk and bring to a gentle simmer. Add the fish sauce, palm sugar, and lime leaves. Stir to combine.
- Add the eggplant and bamboo shoots. Simmer gently for 12-15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the eggplant is tender.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning — you're looking for a balance of salty (fish sauce), sweet (palm sugar), and rich (coconut milk).
- Remove from heat and stir through most of the Thai basil, reserving some for garnish.
- Serve immediately over steamed jasmine rice, topped with the remaining basil leaves and an extra torn lime leaf if you like.