Madame Pa's Signature Thai Green Chicken Curry - for the Thermomix

Madame Pa’s Green Chicken Curry

Blue Elephant Royal Thai Cuisine

Original recipe here:

This is just one of those magic recipes. That one you perfect and feel it's your own signature dish...except of course, it's some one else's! I would love to know more about this Madame Pa, as my journey into Thai food (beginning 15 years ago) was made all the more exquisite by the Blue Elephant cookbook. I'm sure there is many a story to tell.

I would love to hear your experience with this dish - I think it's an exciting and rather different way to use the Thermomix. 

Ingredients:

·      1 cup fresh coriander leaves


·      3tbsp vegetable oil
; just over ½ line on MC - use upside down til oil is needed.

·      1 ½ Tbsp green curry paste


·      pinch freshly ground coriander seeds

·      
1 pinch freshly ground cumin seeds


·      370ml/13fl oz/1 ½  cups coconut milk


·      1 boned and skinned chicken breast, sliced into bite-size pieces


·      2 green aubergines (eggplants),

·      quartered 
sprig pea aubergines (eggplants)


·      1tsp sugar


·      1 ½  Tbsp fish sauce


·      2 kaffir lime leaves, torn in half


·      6 Thai basil leaves


·      1/2 fresh red chilli, thinly sliced



For the garnish


·      2tsp cream of coconut milk

·      
fresh Thai basil for sprinkling

Thermomix Method

Toast cumin and coriander seeds for

2 ½ mins 100 degrees speed 2, cool 1 min

In the meantime wash and spin/pat your coriander leaves

Put a tissue just under the MC and grind

1 min speed 8-9. When finished, lift bowl out and gently tap lid on bowl to loose spices, then tip into the tissue. The coriander will still have shape.

Put coriander in and blitz

2 seconds speed 7. Scrape and remove into a small bowl.

Place oil in TM bowl, set to

23 mins, varoma speed 2 heat for 1 min

At 22mins add the coriander through the hole in the lid and fry 1 min

At 21mins add the paste and ground seeds and fry for 2 mins

At 19 mins press 90 degrees and start adding the coconut milk through the lid ½ a cup every 30 seconds

At 17 mins, press REVERSE, add the chicken through the hole in the lid, press 80 degrees, speed to 1.

At 5 ½ mins add your

·      eggplants (or zucchini and squash as replacement – can add a handful of snowpeas in the last minute)

·      sugar

·      fish sauce (I measure 1/3 of the MC)

·      kaffir lime leaves

·      thai basil leaves

·      chili

When finished, check balance of flavour. If you have used coconut cream instead of milk you will need to add lime juice to cut through the cream and balance the tartness. Otherwise, just balance the salty/sweet/hot and turn on for 1 min 80 degrees reverse, speed 1.

Serve with garnish in thermoserver.

Thai Green Curry Paste

A little bit of this and a little bit of that....still trying to recreate the blue elephant magic. But this comes close. It's a hybrid of a few tips from hungry hippies and this Taste.com recipe (pictured below). With, of course, some little lush fiddling.

Enjoy!

        1 tsp coriander seeds

        1 tsp cumin seeds

         6 white peppercorns or use white pepper – ½ tsp

         2 tsp shrimp paste (see note) (belacan)

         1/4 tsp ground turmeric

         6-7 coriander roots + stalks, thoroughly cleaned and scraped, roughly chopped

          2-3 lemongrass stems (pale part only), roughly chopped

         4-5cm piece of galangal peeled and chopped in half

         8-10 small green or 3 long green chillies, (or a mix), seeds removed and chopped

         4 kaffir lime leaves (see note), spine removed, roughly chopped,

plus zest of 2 kaffir limes or extra leaves

         4 Asian red eschalots, roughly chopped

         5-6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

         For at the end: 30g vegetable oil

The variation in ingredient amounts is because of the possible size variation.

Method

1.   Wrap shrimp paste in a square of foil. Toast with coriander and cumin seeds with the pepper for 6 mins 100 degrees, reverse speed 2. Remove the foil wrapped shrimp paste and set aside.

2.   Cool seeds slightly. Grind for 2 mins speed 10.

3.   Add remaining ingredients, including the shrimp paste removed from foil, but not the oil yet. Blend to a paste by mincing for 30 secs speed 8-9. Stop every 10 seconds and scrape down. Blend on speed 4 while you allow the oil to drip through the MC.

4.   Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Or flatten in a zip lock bag and freeze. Break off 2-3 tablespoons worth when you are making your curries.

To be honest, I had it all blending at speed 7 while I kept chopping and adding ingredients, then turned it up to speed 9 at the end. I did a double quantity and the TM pureed that amount really well.

Cute little Coffee Biscuits

Just a little drop of yum with your afternoon cup of tea. That's all I ask. My son however, wants to grab and run with a bowl of these biscuits before sitting on the stairs to watch the showdown between Mumma Magpie and Mrs Butcher bird. Their babies are getting old enough to come and ask for tid bits now. Afternoons are glorious here. But I digress. Back to little snacks for those who have alot of dietary restrictions and just want a bit of simple yumminess.

GF EF EF FAILSAFE
Enjoy

INGREDIENTS:
50g buckwheat
10g puffed rice or millet
130g sorghum or GF plain flour mix
100g glutinous rice flour *you can mill this first if you just have sticky rice - 2 minutes speed 9
1/2 tsp salt
130g brown sugar
1 tsp of instant decaf coffee *or see note below
1 tsp vanilla extract
170g nuttelex (or butter if dairy is tolerated)
20g milk substitute (rice/soy) or *20g decaf espresso shot
30g golden syrup

METHOD:

Weigh Buckwheat and puffed rice into the TM bowl. Then mill for 30 seconds, speed 9. If using instant decaf coffee, add it and the brown sugar to the TM bowl now, and mill for a further 15 seconds speed 9.

Add in the flours and salt and 'sift' by mixing for 6 seconds speed 6.

Add the nuttelex and mix on speed 6 until you hear a change in sound of the mix starting to become more like bread crumbs. (usually around 8 seconds).

In a separate heat proof bowl or jug, weigh the rice milk/coffee shot and the golden syrup and heat in the microwave for 20 seconds on high heat. OR, if you don't like using a microwave, tip the ingredients out onto the baking paper you will use in a moment, and heat the rice milk/coffee and golden syrup in the TM bowl for 1 minute, 50 degrees speed 2. Return the dry ingredients to the TM bowl.

Add vanilla and coffee/golden syrup to TM bowl (or just vanilla if the golden syrup mix was heated in the TM bowl)

Mix for 8 seconds speed 6 to combine the dough.

Turn onto interval speed and watch through the hole in the lid when it starts to clump together nicely (should be around 15 seconds).

Tip into cling film, wrap and rest for 20 minutes (though, GF is more forgiving - I just cut mine straight away). Preheat oven to 190degrees Celcius.

Cut into small pieces (around 1.5cm cubed), roll into a ball and flatten. I have tiny cookie cutters that I impress slightly into the surface.

Cook for 12 minutes for a slightly soft centre, 14 minutes for very crunchy

Allow to cool. Enjoy

Note, any flavour can cause a change in symptoms, so for those on FAILSAFE, be mindful of the decaf coffee, brown sugar or the vanilla.

**YUMMY VARIATION for Non-FAILSAFERS** If you can have ginger, but are gluten free and want to be free of that very fine sandy texture you can get in gluten free cooking, then add 2 tablespoons of crystallised ginger with the sugar when you mill the second time. Then add 2 teaspoonsful of spices (cinnamon, mixed spice, ginger) when you add the flours.

My Thai - Soup and Salad

Entertain a crowd with fresh and scintillating flavours. This is a really flavoursome way to get used to using your Varoma.

I love the way the Thermomix is cooking the soup and chicken which leaves you the perfect amount of time to get the fresh salad ingredients ready. Thai food is about a little conclave of chatting folks picking their way through the mountains of herbs. It's meant to take a little time...you get to chat and have your fill of beautiful aromas.

The marinade and dressing recipe is here on my blog:

QUICK THAI SOUP:

Ingredients:

Aromatics:

2 clove of garlic

3 cm piece of ginger

2 chillies

2-3 lemongrass bases (white part only)

2 coriander roots
4 kaffir lime leaves

pinch of cumin and coriander optional

30g light oil

Soup ingredients:

400g mix of vegetables for soup – sweet potato, tomato, zucchini roughly chopped

1 tablespoon of vegetable stock concentrate

400g tin of coconut milk

300g water

or 300g chicken stock to replace vegetable stock and water

DO:

Put all aromatics in TM bowl and chop for 10 seconds speed 9. Scrape down, add oil and sauté for 3 minutes, varoma temperature speed 2.

Add all soup vegetables and chop for 5 seconds speed 6.

Add coconut milk, stock, and water. Set for 20 minutes, varoma temperature speed 2.5. Puree at end for 45 seconds speed 9.

STEAMED CHICKEN, VEGETABLE and NOODLE SALAD.

NEED:

2 chicken breasts cut into 3 strips and marinaded in Thai marinade

1 packet of narrow rice noodles

2 carrots – peeled into strips

handful of beans trimmed and cut in half

Salad:

Peeled cucumber

2 handful of bean shoots washed and deheaded.

Bunch of mint leaves washed and dried

Bunch of coriander leaves washed and dried

Can add cherry tomatoes

Optional handful of thai basil leaves washed and dried

Optional shredded wombok cabbage

Optional fried shallots for garnish

Optional toasted peanuts for garnish

DO:

Cover noodles with warm (NOT HOT) water and leave to soak.

Arrange chicken pieces in the top of the varoma on baking paper. (Below is pictured when the paper has been pulled away to allow juices to fall through onto carrot and noodles)

Set TM to cook for 22 minutes Varoma temperature speed 2.

When time has finished, drain noodles. Place noodles and peel carrots into bowl level of Varoma.

Place top shelf with chicken back on top. Slide out the baking paper allowing the juices to fall through onto the noodles and carrots below.

Test the chicken with a knife to see if juices running are pink or clear. Move around the pieces to ensure best cooking of thickest parts.

Set TM to 2 minutes, Varoma temperature speed 2.

Meanwhile, place all salad ingredients into bowl – but reserve garnishes. 

I like to stand with my friends picking herb leaves into a big salad spinner, adding the bean shoots before washing and spinning.

When finished, tip carrots and noodles into salad bowl and lightly toss with half the salad dressing.

Puree soup in TM bowl and set aside (or tip out cooking water).

Place chicken pieces into TM bowl and shred for 6 seconds, REVERSE speed 4.

Toss through salad with more dressing, then garnish salad.

My Thai - the Marinade and Dressing

My Thai is about flavours bubbling on your tongue and making you salivate for more. It's about skipping your way through the gorgeous array of fresh herbs and having fun.

There is always a lot of ingredients in Thai food - don't be discouraged - none of the steps are complicated at all! Make this marinade and dressing 1-3 days before making your salad - or freeze it for longer.

This is designed to partner perfectly with my "Thai Soup and Salad" Recipe.

Marinade

Ingredients:

4 garlic cloves

6cm (squared) ginger

4 chilli (or to taste)

16-20 basil leaves

50g palm sugar

50g tamarind paste

100g fish sauce

40g sesame oil

Steps:

Place garlic, ginger, chilli and basil into TM bowl and chop for 10 seconds speed 9. Then scrape down, add palm sugar and repeat.

Add the remaining ingredients and mix for 10 seconds speed 7. Scrape down sides and blend a further 5 seconds speed 7.

Set aside half of the mix in a bowl to marinade chicken pieces (or put in a small jar for use in next few days).

DRESSING:

To the left-over marinade in the TM bowl add

60g lemon juice plus 40g white vinegar,

40g fish sauce,

40g light olive oil and

50g brown sugar.

Mix for another 10 seconds speed 7 then taste test. If too sour add more sugar. If too salty add more water and lemon juice 1 tablespoon at a time.

Set the dressing aside in a jar. You will need to shake it up to use it.