Thai Red Chicken Curry with Lychees 🌶🌶 🇹🇭

 

Thai red chicken curry is one of my favourites, very easy to make with shop bought, ready made red curry paste.  I use the 'Mae Ploy' brand, which comes in a package and is very handy when you just want to cook enough curry for a family meal. Made in Thailand with ingredients being garlic, dried red chilli, lemongrass, shallot, salt, galangal, shrimp paste, lime peel and pepper, it has no added MSG, preservative or artificial colour.  You can use red curry paste that comes in a jar or a tin, or indeed make your own paste from scratch, but that's another recipe for another day.  A good quality coconut milk (usually the ones with higher percentage in coconut content) is also essential for the success of this dish.  With the vegetables, aim for a contrast in colour, texture and taste.  In this recipe, I use pumpkin, red capsicums, and green peas.  This is a spicy hot curry.  The lychees give a burst of sweetness and fruitiness, bringing cooling respite to your palette before you additively go back for more.  Enjoy with plenty of white rice.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 320g / 11⅓oz chicken breast, cut into 0.75cm / ⅓" thick slices
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 50g / 1¾oz Thai red curry paste
• 400ml / 13.5 fl oz tinned coconut milk
• ½ cup water
• 1 stalk lemongrass, sectioned and bruised with back of knife to release flavour (optional)
• 3 makrut lime leaves (optional)
• 1 red capsicum (about 120g / 4 oz), deseeded and sliced into strips
• 120g / 4 oz butternut pumpkin, peeled and diced into 1cm / ½" cubes
• ½ cup frozen green peas
• 1 tinned whole pitted lychees, drained (about 230g /8oz)
• 1-2 teaspoons sugar, to taste
• ¼ cup coriander leaves, for garnishing

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a medium, heavy based saucepan over medium heat.  Add curry paste and cook, stirring for about 1 minute.
2. Add half of the coconut milk, lemon grass and lime leaves, if using.  Stir until combined.
3. Add the pumpkin.  Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring, until the pumpkin begins to soften.
4. Add the chicken, together with the other half of the coconut milk and ½ cup of water.  Bring it to the boil.
5. Add capsicum and peas.  Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.  
6. Add lychees.  Continue to cook, stirring, for another minute until heated through.
7. Stir in 1-2 teaspoons of sugar.  Have a taste of the curry and adjust seasoning as necessary.
8. Garnish with coriander leaves.    

NOTES:

• You can find the 'Mae Ploy' brand of curry paste in most Perth supermarkets and Asian groceries.
• Fresh lychees can be used instead of tinned ones.
• Lemongrass and 'makrut' lime leaves are added for extra fragrance and taste, if you like.
• This type of curry is meant to be cooked quickly.  The meat and the vegetables are simmered in the curry sauce until just tender.  Avoid overcooking them.
• Chicken can be substituted with beef, prawns, or you can make it a vegetarian curry.