Thai Green Curry

This was absolutely amazing! A little bit of work but well worth it. I added Chicken to the curry and served over Jasmine rice. I've also made it according to the original recipe with shrimp ravioli. Both are great, the shrimp ravioli increases prep time quite a bit though.

Ingredients

5 jalapeño chili peppers, stemmed and seeded

4 cloves garlic

2 stalks lemon grass (tough outer leaves removed), coarsely chopped

1 1/2 pieces ginger root or galangal root

1/4 cup chopped shallots

1/4 bunch cilantro stem ends trimmed (reserve some leaves, minced, for garnish)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 can (13.5 or 14 ounces) unsweetened coconut milk

1 tablespoon fish sauce, or more to taste

1 tablespoon dark brown sugar, or more to taste

1/2 lime (juice only; about 1 tablespoon), or more to taste

1/2 bunch Thai basil leaves (may substitute regular basil), chopped (some reserved for garnish)

Directions

Place the jalapeño chili peppers, garlic, lemon grass, ginger root or galangal root, shallots and cilantro in a food processor and pulse until the mixture becomes a relatively smooth curry paste. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the oil. Add the paste and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes. Gradually add the coconut milk, stirring to combine. Cook for 10 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary so that bubbles just break the surface; the sauce should thicken slightly. Add the fish sauce, sugar and lime juice. Adjust seasonings, adding more fish sauce, sugar or lime juice as desired. Remove pan from the heat and set aside.

Modifications

I am not a fan of fish sauce so I substituted it with light Thai soy sauce.This is strange considering Thai food is my favorite and most Thai food contains fish sauce. I just refuse to cook with it.