Panang curry is a classic Thai dish that has become a Western favourite, because it packs a wallop of flavour using mostly familiar ingredients.
What follows is my own take on traditional Panang curry recipes. There are many different types of Thai curry pastes, each with their own flavour. Panang curry paste is the mild-mannered cousin in the curry family – it has a bit of kick, but it is slightly sweeter and more docile than some of the other curries. If your local grocery store does not carry Panang curry paste, the more generic red curry paste is a very acceptable substitute. If you are feeling adventurous, have access to exotic ingredients and would like to try making your own panang curry paste, a good recipe can be found here.
Traditional Thai recipes often call for kafir lime leaves, but I have omitted them here in favour of a recipe in which all of the ingredients are commonly available. If kafir lime leaves happen to be easily available in the area in which you live, by all means feel free to add 2 tablespoons to the broth. Half a pound of shrimp could also be substituted for the chicken in the recipe, if you prefer. Just add the shrimp together with the vegetables and cook for 3-4 minutes.
You will need:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 chicken breast, cut in small pieces
- 1 tin of premium coconut milk, 14 oz
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3 ½ tbsp Panang curry paste, or red curry paste (more to taste)
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 potato, peeled, baked and cubed
- 1 tomato, cubed
- ½ yellow onion, sliced in strips
- ¼ cup roasted peanuts (optional)
- 1 dried red pepper, crushed (more to taste)
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves, torn in half
Directions:
Heat the oil in a small pan over medium-high heat, then add the chicken and grill. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the coconut milk until hot but not yet boiling. Add the garlic and curry paste, and stir until dissolved. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes. Stir in the fish sauce, sugar, potato, tomato, peanuts, and crushed red pepper. Finally add the cooked chicken, and stir just until heated through. Taste to adjust the seasonings – you may add extra curry paste or dried red pepper, if you decide that you would like a little more heat at this point. Stir in the fresh basil leaves just before serving.
Serve over hot, fluffy basmati rice. Enjoy!
Janice Fehlauer - I live my life in pursuit of many interests - music, travel, gardening, enjoying the great outdoors, and of course cooking. I was born ...
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