Vietnamese chicken curry
4 servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | teaspoon | Canola oil or other flavorless veg. oil |
| 4 | Chicken breast halves skinless | |
| 2 | tablespoons | Minced shallots or |
| 2 | Garlic cloves; mashed | |
| 2 | To 3 tsp. minced fresh or rehydrated turmeric or- | |
| 1½ | teaspoon | Ground dried turmeric |
| 1 | teaspoon | Ground cinnamon |
| 1 | teaspoon | Ground coriander |
| 1 | teaspoon | Ground cumin |
| 1 | tablespoon | Minced fresh lemongrass or |
| 1 | teaspoon | Sereh (lemongrass) powder |
| ¼ | teaspoon | Freshly ground black pepper |
| 1/16 | To 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper mild to hot, your choice | |
| ⅓ | cup | Unsweetened coconut milk |
| 1 | cup | ;Water |
| 1 | teaspoon | Vietnamese fish sauce (or Thai fish sauce) |
Directions
Heat oil in a large skillet over a moderate flame until very hot but not quite smoking. Add the chicken breasts and saute, turning once, until golden. Add shallots and spices, using the smallest quantity of cayenne and adding more later to taste. Saute until the ingredients are fragrant, then add the coconut milk, water and fish sauce. Cover the skillet and simmer 10 to 20 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Serve immediately.
Carlson writes: "Curries appear in all Southeast Asian and Indian cuisines. Fresh turmeric gives more pungency to this Vietnamese dish, but dried turmeric, either store-bought or rehydrated and ground at home, is a satisfactory substitute." From Cornelia Carlson's "Ancient, Pungent Turmeric" article in "The Herb Companion." Oct./Nov. 1994, Vol. 7, No. 1. Pg. 47. Posted by Cathy Harned.
From: Cathy Harned Date: 09-26-94