Red curry pasteStore-bought or homemade~2-3 tbspest.
Coconut milk~1½ cupsest.
Chicken or pork stockUsed to cut the richness of the coconut milk; water can substitute~1 cupest.
Fish sauceAdd about half at first for seasoning, then adjust to taste at the end~1 tbspest.
Palm sugarUsed to balance saltiness; should never dominate over savoriness~1 tbspest.
Boneless chicken thigh, cut into bite-sized pieces~1 lbest.
Kabocha squashSkin is edible, no need to peel~12 ozest.
Bell pepper, thinly sliced~1est.
Makrut lime leavesBruised before adding to infuse flavor~4-5est.
Thai basilStirred in at the end to wilt using residual heat~¼ cupsest.
Steps
▶ Tap a timecode to jump to roughly that moment in the video.
1
Bring about one-third of the coconut milk to a full rolling boil.
2
Turn heat to medium, add the curry paste, break up all lumps, and keep stirring until the paste thickens and coconut oil starts separating and rising to the surface—this usually takes about 5 minutes.
3
Once the oil has separated for about 30 seconds to a minute, pour in the remaining coconut milk and stock, stirring until the curry paste fully dissolves into the liquid.
4
Season with fish sauce (add about half the total amount first) and palm sugar. If using long-simmering herbs like makrut lime leaves, bruise and add them now, then let the liquid simmer for at least 5 minutes to let the flavors meld.
5
Add ingredients in order of cooking time: put in the chicken first and let it braise for about 15 minutes until tender and flavorful; after about 8 minutes, add the kabocha squash and cook for roughly 7 more minutes until tender.
6
Once the squash is done, stir in the thinly sliced bell peppers, then turn off the heat and let residual heat gently cook them until just tender-crisp.
7
Taste and adjust the seasoning with more fish sauce or palm sugar as needed, then stir in the Thai basil leaves and let residual heat wilt them before serving.
PrimedTableBETA
