Kaeng khari pak - An Indo thai meal

I am a self declared purist when it comes to thai food. Then why is this dish labelled indo thai ? Because it is recognizably Indian in its origin, what with the use of spices like elaichi, haldi,dhaniya etc. in the ubiquitious curry powder and the addition of aloo ( yes ! aloo) and carrots in the curry. The vegetarian version that I made replaces chicken with babycorn and snow peas. Of course, any veggies/tofu of your choice would taste great !

Vegetarian thai yellow curry

Serves 2

Ingredients

1.5 tbsp yellow curry paste or 1tbsp red curry paste mixed with 1/2 tsp turmeric powder (yes !learned this from a thai chef)

1 cup mixed vegetables (I used carrot, baby corn and snow peas)

1 medium potato, cubed and parboiled

1 shallot cut into largish chunks

5 to 6 kaffir lime leaves

1 cup coconut milk

1 tbsp oil

Light soy sauce/ salt to taste

1/2 to 1 tsp sugar

1. Fry the paste in 1 tbsp oil for about 2 to 3 minutes till it leaves oil. The traditional method eliminates oil and uses 2 to 3 tbsp coconut cream to fry the paste. Try that if you have coconut cream handy.

2. Once the paste is cooked, add the coconut milk and bring it to a gentle simmer. Please do not fry the veggies in oil as it gives them an overcooked taste which we do not want here.

3.Add the veggies and potato and let them boil on a medium flame till nearly cooked to your liking.

4. Add soy/salt and sugar and lime leaves. If cooked correctly, the curry should have just a hint of oil floating on the top ( which, I feel is the hallmark of a well made curry!).

5. Serve with jasmine rice.