Thai Red Fish Curry

I have always loved Thai dishes, especially the coconut milk based soups and curries they serve at the restaurant. I have tried to attempt some of these dishes at home but the lack of fresh Thai herbs like Galanjal, lemon grass etc which impart the aroma and flavour that is so specific to Thai food always left them somehow void.
I had given up my attempts at Thai food and had resorted to restaurant food whenever I was in the Thai mood, until I came across these divine herbs in the local grocery shop. Went home armed with some of them and just got going.
The combination of Seafood with coconut milk and Thai herbs always had a mystical aura to it. And in that Tom Yum Soup takes the cake. I didnot dare to attempt it this time but settled for a lesser one, Thai Fish red curry, which I knew was a hard-to-go-wrong dish.
This curry is very fragrant, with the use of fresh herbs and rich in flavours.


Ingredients:
Any fleshy fish fillet, cut into 1" pieces - 250gms
Oil - 2Tbsp
Red Bell Pepper - 1/2No, sliced thin
Mushrooms, cut into pieces - 1 cup
Garlic cloves, finely chopped - 2No.s
Lemon grass, finely chopped - 2Tbsp
Galanjal or fresh ginger, grated - 2 Tbsp
Red chilli powder - 1tsp
Turmeric powder - 1tsp
Thai Red Curry Paste - 2Tbsp
Canned Thick coconut milk - 1/4ltr
Fish Sauce - 2 Tbsp
Brown Sugar - 2tsp
Fresh Basil, finely chopped - 2Tbsp


Method :-
Heat oil in a deep pan. Saute Bell peppers nd Mushroom with a little salt for 2-3 minutes, stirring in between. Add the garlic, lemon grass and galnjal and saute while stirring, until the garlic gives out a nice aroma.
Add the red chilli powder, turmeric powder, fish sauce, Thai red curry paste, brown sugar and saute for a minute.
Add the coconut milk and water, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
Slowly add in the fish pieces and simmer, covered for 10 minutes, until the fish gets cooked.
Remove from fire, add lime juice and basil leaves and serve with Thai Jasmine Rice.

Pineapple Fried Rice

This is a classic Thai dish almost always served in scooped out pineapple shell.

Thai style fried rice stands different from Chinese fried rice with the addition of ntraditional thai ingredients like Pineapple, cashew nuts and raisins. The resulting taste is sweet and sour.

Ingredients :

Basmati Rice - 2 cups

Pineapple, fresh or canned, chopped - 1 cup

Onion, chopped - 1small

Spring onion, chopped - 1cup

Green Peas, cooked - 1/2 cup

Red, Green and Orange Bell Pepper, chopped - 1 cup

Ginger Garlic paste - 1Tbsp

Egg - 1 No.

Boneless chicken, cooked and shredded - 1 cup

Pepper powder - 1Tbsp

Curry powder - 1Tbsp

Soy sauce - 3 Tbsp

Fish sauce - 2Tbsp

Pineapple juice - 3Tbsp

Cashew nuts - 2Tbsp

Raisins - 2Tbsp

Method:

1.Boil water in a vessel, add salt and 1tsp lemon juice. Add rice and cook till done. Drain.

For fried rice, it is always better to use cooked rice refrigerated overnight. This will make the rice less sticky while preparing fried rice.

2.Heat 1Tbsp oil in a wok. Fry the cashew nuts and raisins and keep aside. Add chopped onion, spring onion, green peas and bell peppers and stir fry for 1 minute. Take it out of oil and keep aside.

3.Beat the egg with a little soy sauce. Heat 1tsp oil and gently scramble the egg. Remove from wok and keep aside.

4.Add little more oil if needed, saute ginger garlic paste until slightly brown and fragrant. Add chicken and pepper powder and saute on high heat till slightly browned. Add curry powder, fish sauce and soy sauce. Add pineapple and saute for 1 minute on medium heat. Add rice to this, mix in the pineapple juice and stir well. Add the stir-fried vegetables and egg until everything is mixed in well. Check seasoning and salt and adjust if needed.
5.Serve in a carved Pineapple boat and garnish with Cashew nuts, raisins and spring onions.