Thai Green Chicken Curry

There are a number of Thai dishes which we can try. Thai green chicken curry is one among that. This is my husband’s favourite dish. I have noticed several times, whenever we go in any continental restaurants and if Thai green chicken curry is available there, he never miss that. Normally all Thai dishes are spicy. This one also same. However, while preparing you can control the spiciness according to your taste. For preparing Thai dishes, of course some of the ingredients may not be easily available. We can use substitutes but it is better to get the original items to get the real Thai taste. The aroma and taste of Thai dishes are very different from Indian dishes.This is usually served with white steam rice.

Ingredients

1.     Boneless chicken                                  : ½ kg

2.     Thai green curry paste                          :  3 table spoon (If this is not available, we can make this at home.Recipe for this added below)              

3.     Coconut milk                                        : 1 cup (250 ml)

4.     Fish sauce                                             : 1 table spoon

5.     Palm sugar / Jaggery                            : 2 table spoon

6.     Bamboo shoots or Eggplant                 : 100 g

(Bamboo shoots are processed edible shoots of bamboo that come out of the ground. This is available in market. Eggplant also can be used instead of bamboo shoots. Eggplant is nothing but the plain blue brinjal.)  

7.     Basil leaves                                          : 20 gm

8.     Kaffir lemon leaves                              : 10 gm (Normal lime leaves can also be used)

9.     Lemon zest                                           : 10 gm

10.  Capsicum                                                : 1 no. s  

11.  Chicken stock                                         : 1 cup (This is the boiled water by putting chicken pieces in it)

If Thai green curry paste is not available, you can make with the following ingredients. Just need to mix all these together, grind it till the mixture become a perfect paste. This mixture need to be kept in refrigerator for at least 10 days to get the perfect taste. Believe me, making this dish is not easy if the readymade green paste is not available.

1.     Medium spicy green chillies                : 8 to 10 no. s

2.     Shallots crushed                                   : 5 no. s

3.     Ginger crushed                                     : one piece (5 cm)

4.     Garlic crushed                                      : 2 cloves

5.     Coriander                                              : 20 gm (Leaves, stalk and root also if possible)

6.     Lemon grass                                         : 2 stalks (2 Table spoon of crushed dry lemon grass if fresh not available

7.     Lime                                                      : 1 (zest in grated condition and juice)

8.     Kaffir lime leaves                                  : 8 no. s (If not available, add quantity of lemon zest)

9.     Galanjal                                                 : I piece (2.5 cm)

10.  Coriander seeds                                       : 1 table spoon

11.  Ground Cumin                                        : 1 table spoon

12.  Black pepper                                           : 1 table spoon (Full pepper corn is best if available)

13.  Thai fish sauce                                         : 1 to 2 Table spoon

14.  Olive oil                                                   : 3 Table spoon

15.  Vinegar                                                    : 1 Teaspoon

16.  Salt                                                           : 1 table spoon.

Preparation of Thai green chicken curry

1. Get all the 9 items ready.

2.Take 3 to 4 basil leaves and grind it with ¼ cup of coconut milk till you get a perfect green mixture and keep aside. This is our colouring agent. Sieve the mixture to avoid any uncrushed leaf pieces in to the curry.

Note: In this cooking we are not at all using any sort of cooking oil. We are doing it in coconut milk and the curry will get the oil content from the extract of this milk.

3. Put ¾ cup of coconut milk in a thick bottomed pan and heat it in low flame. Stir it as it goes on. Within 10 to 12 minutes, you can see the coconut milk get condensed to a thick form.

4· Once you feel separation of the milk to solid part and slightly oily liquid part, you can add 3 tablespoon of Thai green curry paste in to this and get a perfect mixture. Now the colour of the mixture will be pale yellowish green.

5· After a few minutes, add chicken pieces in to this mixture and get a perfect coating on those. Continue cooking on low flame.

6· After 3 to 5 minutes, add one cup chicken stock into it and mix well.

7· Add the prepared basil leaf and coconut milk mixture for getting the green colour. The curry paste itself will have enough salt required for this curry but you can add more if required after tasting the mix.

8· Cook it for 15 to 20 minutes in low flame so that the chicken will get cooked  slowly in the masala mix.

9· In between, you can add 2 table spoon of palm sugar / jaggery (Sharkkara or Vellam or gud) and one table spoon fish sauce. Palm sugar is for getting a little sweetness in the spicy taste.

10· Once you feel the chicken get half cooked, add the bamboo shoots or eggplant pieces and cut pieces of capsicum.

Note: Here in this cooking, I have used eggplant as bamboo shoots were not readily available. In my experience, bamboo shoot will give you more taste than eggplant.

Note: If you use a mixture of various coloured capsicum (Green, Red and Yellow), the curry will look beautiful. Quantity should not be increased.

11.  Add 4 to 5 basil leaves, 2 to 3 kaffir lime leaves, 10 g / one teaspoon lemon zest.

12· Continue this on low flame till you get chicken and vegetables cooked well.

13. Your Thai green chicken curry is ready to serve. Garnish it with basil leaves and red chilly.