i love curry

here's a recipe i picked up on a shoot with curtis stone, that tall blonde aussie chef. it's one of my favorite curries because it's so easy and you can add whatever you like or happen to have in the fridge. we usually make it with chicken but tofu or lobster would be great too. the sweetness of the fresh pineapple is a perfect compliment to the heat from the red curry paste. you might need to make a trip to a specialty grocery store but everyone should know where their local asian market is and have fun wandering the isles for new goodies!

Quick Curry

14 oz coconut milk

2 tbs red curry paste

1 1/2 tbs fish sauce

1 small knob ginger, peeled & sliced

8 oz chinese long beans

1 1/2 tsp tamarind paste

1 1/2 cups fresh pineapple chunks

2 kaffir lime leaves

2 chicken breasts, chopped

1/2 cup thai basil

In a saucepan, bring coconut milk to a simmer and stir in curry paste, fish sauce and ginger. Add beans, tamarind, pineapple and lime leaves and bring back to a simmer. Add chicken and simmer until chicken is cooked through and beans are tender. Stir in chopped basil and season with salt to taste.