Curry

Tofu and Chickpea Massaman Curry

April 4, 2015 by The Partial Ingredients

I love the flavors of Massaman curry. This recipe is a take on those flavors but with a twist. Traditionally Massaman curry is made with chicken, beef, or tofu. I chose the tofu version for this recipe and added chickpeas for protein instead of potatoes and peas for more veggies. You can make the red curry paste from scratch or go to a local Thai or Asian market and pick up a pre-made version. I like to buy a few cans of the Maesri brand curry pastes on hand for busier nights. Surprisingly, I haven’t found a huge discrepancy in quality or flavor of the dish. I was pleased with how quickly the recipe came together and how flavorful the dish turned out to be. If you make a large batch of the curry paste before hand it makes for a perfect week day dinner that comes together quickly and easily.
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Thai Curry Noodle Soup with Chicken

September 14, 2014 by The Partial Ingredients

Lately I can’t get enough of Thai curries! The balance of savory and fresh ingredients make Thai food one of my favorite meals. This curry is a soup with rice noodles and a savory broth. The base is flavored by red curry paste and coconut milk. It’s surprisingly easy and quick to throw together yet the broth tastes like it has been cooking for hours. The chicken is very thinly sliced so it cooks in a few minutes in the hot broth. You can find red curry paste at local Thai markets or make it from scratch. I garnished this dish with plenty of fresh Thai basil, fish sauce, lime juice, green onion and cilantro.
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Thai Panang Curry with Tofu

September 8, 2014 by The Partial Ingredients

Does it get any better than a savory Thai broth with coconut milk and spices? This recipe is easy to make and doesn’t take long to throw together. For the curry paste I like to go to the local Thai market which saves me time but doesn’t skimp on flavor. Panang is moderately spicy and seasoned with turmeric, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and other savory spices. I chose tofu for this dish but chicken or beef can be substituted for the protein. This curry reminded me a bit of Indian curries since they often use the same spice profile. I served it with rice and garnished with plenty of fish sauce, fresh mint, lime juice and Thai basil.

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Thai Red Curry with Chicken and Peanuts

July 21, 2014 by The Partial Ingredients

Curries are one of my favorite things to make. Besides being fairly easy to prep and cook, the results are often outstanding! This curry combines thinly sliced chicken, butternut squash and peanuts in a red curry sauce. You can’t really get much better than that! The best thing about this recipe is the layering of the flavors that come from the coconut milk, peanuts and red curry paste. When I’m in a pinch I buy a pre-made red curry paste from a local Thai market but when I’m in no hurry I just make it from scratch. The sauce is rich but refreshing at the same time–perfect for a cooler summer night’s dinner. I served the curry with rice and garnished each plate with green onions, fresh mint and plenty of peanuts and lime juice.
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Thai Green Curry with Chicken and Eggplant

May 31, 2014 by The Partial Ingredients

I simply can’t get enough of Thai curries. The combination of fresh herbs with creamy coconut milk and layered spices can be transcendental and delicious. This curry combines thinly shredded chicken with eggplant, red peppers, coconut milk in a fresh green curry broth. I usually make all my curry pastes from scratch but I found a pre-made version from a local Thai market that I like a lot. I recommend finding your own local asian or Thai market that has all the ingredients you need, no substitutes needed! If you do go for the homemade version, recipes can be readily found online. This recipe is easy to throw together and doesn’t require much prep or cooking time. Serve with rice and if you want to make the meal vegetarian, substitute one package of extra firm tofu for the chicken and switch out chicken stock for vegetable stock.
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Tofu and Chickpea Curry with Green Peas

September 28, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

Curries usually take a bit of time and effort to cook so I wanted to try one that didn’t take too long to make. This curry was easy to throw together and the cook time was pretty fast. I used a basic blend of turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, fenugreek, cloves, bay leaves, and coriander for the curry seasoning. The half teaspoon of turmeric was all it took to turn this dish into a bright yellow curry! The flavors were as vibrant as the color and the tofu, chickpeas and green peas worked great together. The milk and cream gave it a richness that heightened the curry flavors. The creaminess reminded me a lot of Thai coconut curries, just without the coconut flavor. The recipe worked nicely with a side of rice which I spooned into the bowl generously!

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Ethiopian Chickpea and Cauliflower Stew with Preserved Lemons

August 24, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

To go along my Ethiopian Lentil Curry I chose another Ethiopian-style curry with chickpeas and cauliflower. One of my favorite things about curry is that both of these dishes can be called a “curry” yet they are both so different and complimentary at the same time. This stew is a yellow curry seasoned with turmeric, cumin, cardamom, coriander and paprika. It is more loosely based on Ethiopian chickpea and vegetable stews because I thought it would be fun to embellish it a bit. I don’t think preserved lemons are found too much in Ethiopian food but they really added amazing flavor to this dish. The preparation was easy and the result was so tasty! It tasted great with the lentils as well as the Injera bread.
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Ethiopian Red Lentil and Sweet Potato Curry

August 18, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

A few years ago I went to an Ethiopian restaurant and was completely taken with the food. I couldn’t remember all of the curries that I tried but I do remember the bread they served with the main course: injera. I wanted to recreate that meal at home so I set out researching Ethiopian curries. It turns out that the injera is served as the “plate” to place a variety of tasty curries. I settled on this red lentil and yam curry which I thought would go nicely on top of the injera. A spice blend of cumin, cinnamon, ginger, paprika and allspice flavor the curry. The sweet potato and lentils went together so well and provided an element of sweetness that balanced the spices. It was a really simple dish that tasted great with the injera.
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Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk

July 9, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

It probably seems crazy to most Americans to down a hot bowl of soup right now. This soup makes more sense to me because temperatures on the central coast just haven’t risen much at all. Next time it hits lower temperatures this soup would be perfect to enjoy on a cooler day. Better yet, you could wait until late summer or Fall when the squash actually comes into season. If you are craving roasted butternut squash like me, there’s no time like the present for a good soup.

I chose to make this soup with a few of the great flavors from Thai cooking–coconut milk, red chili paste, and a mixture of fragrant spices. I roasted the butternut squash first in the oven and threw all the ingredients into a big soup pot to simmer. The soup had a lot of wonderful flavors. I loved the flavor of the roasted squash with the creamy coconut milk, spicy chilies, and thai spices. It was pretty simple to throw together and I couldn’t be more happy with how it turned out! I served it with a side of jasmine rice and ended up mixing a few tablespoons of the rice into the soup. It turned out to be a great combination!
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Sri Lankan Pork Curry with Yellow Rice

July 2, 2012 by The Partial Ingredients

Sri Lankan curries are delicious because they use a number of Indian spices along with fresh ingredients like tamarind, lemongrass, and coconut milk. As for the curry, I decided to use a Sri Lankan blend of cumin, fennel, coriander, fenugreek, cardamom, cloves, curry leaves and cinnamon. I reserved 1 tsp of the curry powder for the yellow rice. The key step in using any curry powder is to toast it beforehand. It’s a step that can be forgotten easily but it results in much more fragrant flavors. While the pork was roasting in the oven, I prepared the base for the curry which wasn’t too hard to throw together. After letting the meat rest the pork was shredded and mixed in to the curry sauce. I loved the flavors of this dish! I really enjoyed the slightly sour flavor of the tamarind and the creaminess of the coconut milk. The pork curry with the yellow rice were great together as well.

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