Green Curry Coconut Chicken

Posted by H&B on - Generic-Asian - Hard

For the curry:

  • 2 1/2 lbs chicken
  • 2 1/2 cups canned coconut milk
  • 1 3/4 cups chicken stock
  • 2 kaffir lime leaves, or zest of 2 limes
  • 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and rough chopped
  • 1 small butternut squash or winter squash, peeled, de-seeded, and rough chopped
  • 1/4 lb green beans
  • 1 bunch of fresh cilantro for garnish

For the curry paste:

  • 2 tsp coriander seeds
  • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
  • 3-4 fresh serrano chilies, chopped
  • 4 tsp sugar
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 3 inches of a lemon grass stalk, chopped
  • 1 thumb of peeled fresh ginger, finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 4 shallots, chopped
  • 1 tsp shrimp paste or crushed dried shrimp with a little oil
  • 1 bunch fresh cilantro
  • 3 Tbsp fresh mint
  • 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Curry paste:

Start by toasting the coriander and cumin seeds in a low oven or in a non-stick pan over low heat. When the spices start to smell toasty, remove from heat and set aside. Grind the chilies with the sugar and salt in a mortar and pestle or food processor. The mortar and pestle makes a much smoother paste, but the food processor will do just fine. Combine the seeds, lemon grass, ginger, garlic, and shallots with the chili paste and grind smooth. Add the shrimp paste, cilantro leaves, mint, nutmeg, and oil and mix well.

The curry:

Start by straining the coconut milk. Or, if you are careful, you can simply pour the thin liquid out of the can. The thick fat solids usually stay at the top of the can. Pour the thin coconut liquid into a large stock pot. Add the lime leaves or zest and simmer chicken in this liquid, uncovered, for about 20 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and reserve the cooking liquid. When cool enough to handle, cut the chicken into bite size pieces. Place 1 cup of the reserve cooking liquid into a large stock pot. Add 4-5 Tbsp of the curry paste to the liquid, depending on taste. Boil rapidly until the liquid has reduced completely. Add the chicken stock, chicken meat, sweet potatoes, squash, and beans. Simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15-20 minutes. Right before serving, stir in the thick part of the coconut milk and heat through to thicken. Serve on a bed of jasmine rice and garnish with cilantro. This dish is also very good with shrimp and or fish. Just add the seafood in the last 10 minutes of cooking so it does not get over-cooked.