THAI CHICKEN & ASPARAGUS CURRY

This recipe is a combination from two cookbooks: "5 of the best" by Valli Little and "spice market" by Jane Lawson. It is a very mild curry and very fragrant. I love curries, especially when made from scratch. It is very simple to make your own curry paste, and the result is much better than if using the paste from a jar.

INGREDIENTS

2 Tbsp (40 ml) olive oil
700g boneless chicken thighs, cut into thin slices
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 lemon-grass stem, outer leaves removed, quartered lenghtways
4 Tbsp green curry paste
1 3/4 cup (435 ml) coconut cream
2 1/2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp grated palm sugar
1 Tbsp green peppercorns, drained
2 kaffir lime leaves, finely chopped
1 bunch thin asparagus, woody ends trimmed, halved
To serve & garnish
coriander leaves
1 fresh long red chilli, seeded and finely sliced
steamed jasmine rice 
lime wedges

Green curry paste
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
8-10 fresh small green chillies, seeded
2 lemon-grass stems, white part only, finely sliced
2.5 cm piece of fresh galangal, finely chopped or 1 1/2 tsp ground galangal
1 tsp very finely chopped makrut (kaffir lime) zest or 4-5 makrut leaves
5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
4 red Asian shallots, chopped
6 coriander roots, finely chopped
1 handful Thai basil, finely chopped
2 tsp shrimp paste
vegetable oil for blending

METHOD:
If you are making your own green curry paste, start by dry-frying the coriander and cumin in a small frying pan for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant, then remove from the pan.

Using a mortar and pestle, pound the chillies, lemongrass, galangal and makrut zest or leaves into a paste. Add the garlic, shallots and coriander roots and pound together. Add the remaining ingredients and dry-roasted spices and pound until the mixture forms a smooth paste.
Alternatively, you can use a food processor o blender to blend all the ingredients into as smooth a paste as possible. Add vegetable oil as needed to assist the blending.

Use as required or keep in an airtight jar. The paste will keep for up to 1 week in the fridge. You can also freeze it to use another time. It makes about 3/4 cup.

To make the curry, heat the oil in a wok over a high heat. Stir-fry the chicken in batches until golden all over. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Return the wok to the heat. Add the onion, garlic and lemongrass and stir-fry for a few minutes, until the onion is soft. 

Add the curry paste, stir to combine and cook for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant.

Return the chicken to the wok and mix well.

Add the coconut cream, the fish sauce and palm sugar, then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes. 

Add the peppercorns and kaffir lime leaves and cook for a further 1 minute. 

Add the asparagus and cook until bright green, approximately 2 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Serve the curry, garnished with coriander and chilli slices, with jasmine rice and lime wedges.

Serves 4.