GREEN SOUP CURRY

Note: if you are pressed for time, you can purchase green curry paste from the store (although it won’t taste nearly as delicious as homemade paste!)

1. Heat up a dry pan and put in the coriander seeds, mace, cumin seeds, and nutmeg powder. Keep stirring to prevent mixture from burning and sticking to the bottom of the pan.
2. Stir until the mixture becomes a beautiful golden color and the aroma of the spices is the air. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
3. Flatten and remove the skin from the garlic. Set aside.
4. Peel the shallots and chop them into small pieces.
5. To prepare the lemongrass, cut off the bulb part of the lemongrass until you can see the purple ring inside and remove the hard outer layer. Cut off the lower, paler area of the lemongrass and chop the rest finely.
6. Chop up the chilies and remove all the seeds (because these are really spicy).
7. Roughly chop up the coriander and the kaffir lime leaves.
8. Use a pestle and mortar to grind the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, nutmeg, and mace together. Do so by lightly but firmly tapping down on the seeds until flattened, and then start grinding them. Continue to pound and grind until it is a semi-fine powder. Set aside.
9. Mash the garlic into a pulp using the pestle and mortar. Add shallots to garlic and pulp and grind as well.
10. Slowly introduce the other green ingredients, including the lemongrass, chilis, coriander, and kaffir.
11. Spoon in the galangal paste and salt. Continue to grind with pestle and mortar.
12. Introduce the shrimp paste, and then the ground spices from earlier.
13. Add a handful of basil leaves and crush it as well.

1. Crush, peel, and finely dice garlic.
2. Peel and finely dice the shallots.
3. Dice the leftover lemongrass (from before).
4. Dice the chilies finely.
5. Finely chop the coriander.
6. Crush half of the pepper and slice lengthwise for long strips of red pepper.
7. Finely slice and dice one stalk of spring onion.
8. Chop 2 limes in half.
9. Chop chicken thighs into bite sized chunks.
10. Pour olive oil into pan and add diced shallots. Keep stirring to ensure shallots do not burn, until browned.
11. Add chicken and garlic. Cook until all sides of chicken are white.
12. Pour in enough chicken stock to cover the chicken, and add green curry paste.
13. Add fish sauce and coconut milk. Stir and simmer for 7 mins. Taste and add more green curry paste if needed.
14. Add red peppers, spring onion, chili, kaffir lime leaves, and lemongrass.
15. Let cook for 3-4 minutes until the red peppers are cooked.
16. Squeeze in the juice of 2 limes and mix.
17. Add in coriander, stir, and simmer for 1 minute. Garnish and serve.