Although this is a chicken dish, I like to include chunks of butternut squash as it's great for soaking up the wonderful rich and spicy sauce. If you don't have butternut squash, then aubergine is a good alternative that is often used in Thai recipes.
My family prefer chicken breast to thigh (heresy I know!), so I've sauteed the breast first, then set it aside before adding it to the curry towards the end of the cooking time. If you prefer chicken thigh, then the chicken can be added to the curry along with the butternut squash and pepper.
Thai basil is an optional garnish, that has a strong aniseed taste. I recommend trying it first as it has a very distinctive flavour that is not to everyone's liking.
Serves 3-4
2-3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 chicken breasts
1 large white onion
1 red pepper
200g butternut squash
1 teaspoon of grated ginger
2 teaspoons of grated garlic
4 tablespoons of Thai red curry paste
2 tablespoons of fish sauce
1 tablespoon of palm sugar
400g tin of coconut milk
Seasoning
To serve (optional)
Thai basil
Lime
- Cut the chicken breasts into 2-3cm chunks.
- Dice the onion.
- Deseed the pepper and cut into 2-3cm chunks or strips.
- Peel the garlic and ginger and grate them using a fine grater/microplane.
- Peel the butternut squash and cut into 2-3cm chunks.
- Heat the oil in a large sauté pan (or wok) over a medium heat.
- Once the oil is really hot, add ⅓ or ½ the chicken to the pan (depending on the size of the pan) and stir, keeping the chicken pieces moving until they have some colour and no pink meat is visible.
- Remove the chicken from the pan and repeat for the rest of the chicken, then set aside.
- Add a little more oil to the pan if needed, and when the oil is hot, sauté the onion until it becomes translucent.
- Add the garlic and ginger, and sauté for 1-2 minutes, being careful not to let the garlic burn.
- Add the curry paste, stir to combine and cook for a couple more minutes.
- Add the coconut milk, palm sugar, fish sauce, red pepper and butternut squash and stir to combine. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 15 minutes (or until the squash is tender).
- Add the chicken and cook for a further few minutes until the chicken is cooked through and no pink meat remains..
- Serve with Jasmine rice and garnish with finely chopped Thai basil and a wedge of lime.
