Croft Family Illuminated Blog: June 2010

Ok guys, let me just say that if you haven’t tried this curry, you haven’t really lived yet. NO, YOU JUST HAVEN’T LIVED!! I’M TELLING YOU!!!!!!
I’m kidding.
But not really. This is the curry you want to eat every day for the rest of your life. Forever. Ok, I’m getting carried away again. I’ll stop.
Only after I say this is SO AMAZING IT WILL MAKE YOU WANT TO CRY TEARS OF GRAPE JUICE.

Okay for reals now. It’s basically eating candy for dinner.

We’ve been experimenting with this dish for awhile now. Not really making any radical changes, but I think the whole pineapple thing was not part of the original recipe. Micah says it’s not really authentic for Thai people to put pineapple in their curry, but we have to accommodate our American and desperate need for sweetness, don’t we? I love pineapple, so I really don’t think this is a bad idea. The picture above (which I stole from the internets) looks the most like the finished product that we make, except I think they used fish instead of chicken. Chicken is easier for me to handle, so I opt for that choice of meat.
There is only one trick to this dish that may make it seem a little tricky, and that’s the actual curry paste:

04/21/08 World photo/Rochelle Feil
Mae Ploy Thai yellow curry paste

We seem to be able to find these pretty easily in most Asian markets. Apparently Amazon has some for 2.89, which isn’t a bad price at all. You will not regret buying it either way.

So here is what you need!

~ 1-2 tablespoons yellow curry paste (depending on how spicy you want it)
~ One 13 1/2 oz. can coconut milk:

(we use this kind – Aroy-D is fine too)
~ 1 large chicken breast, cubed
~ 2 medium potatoes, also cubed
~ 1/2 Onion, chopped
~ Fish Sauce, about a tablespoon… or less or more (Ok let’s be honest. We haven’t really measured out everything in it’s exactness, but ingredients like these are more according to taste. I don’t really know how it would taste without it, but Micah says it’s vital, so while you’re out getting the curry, look for this:

(Squid brand Thai fish sauce. Just look for the squid on the bottle. Sometimes the label is written in Thai, sometimes in English. They’re both the same.)
~ 1 14oz. can of diced pineapple, drained
~ pinch sugar
~ cilantro
~ cooked Rice, for serving
Directions:
Grease a large skillet with vegetable oil (about about 1-2 tablespoons) and put the curry in and sauté until the aroma comes out. Add 1/2 the can of the coconut milk. Add the onions and the chicken and start cooking the chicken. After onions are translucent add the potatoes. Also add the rest of the coconut milk. Once you’ve added the potatoes cover the pan and put the heat on low so that they can simmer and cook. (About 15 mins.) (Sometimes we add pineapple juice to moisten the dish and help cook the potatoes). Once potatoes are cooked you can add the pineapples and as much cilantro as you want, as well as the elusive fish sauce. Also add a pinch of sugar to taste (naughty :-) Serve over cooked rice. This makes enough for 2-3. If you want to feed a crowd, double the ingredients.

Pretty easy, huh? Enjoy it. You deserve it.