Recipe for Shrimp and Veggie Curry

Here's a recipe for a tasty, quick meal.  I always keep some frozen shrimp in the freezer.  They can be defrosted quickly in a bowl of room temperature water.  Of course, if you have access to freshly caught shrimp, use those. This quick to prepare curry is a little crunchy, a little creamy, with lots of intense flavor, but mild heat.  You can up the heat factor if you're a "hottie".  
Other than making the rice, if serving with the curry, this can be on the table in about 20 minutes. 


Yield: 4 servings
Time: 20 minutes (plus rice)
Ingredients:

• ½ cup diced red bell pepper
• ½ cup diced onion
• 1 cup diced fresh tomatoes (could use canned)
• 1 TBSP canola oil
• 2 TBSP mild curry paste (or 3-4 TBSP curry powder)
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 20 medium frozen shrimp, peeled, deveined, (defrosted in room temp water rinse or overnight in fridge)
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• 2 TBSP coarsely shredded basil plus handful finely diced for serving
• Juice from ½ a lime plus wedges for serving
• Salt and pepper if needed
• Naan or rice for serving

Method:

• Heat the oil over medium to medium high heat.
• Add diced pepper, onion, and curry paste (or powder).
• Cook until veggies are softening, about 5 minutes (turn heat down if browning too much).
• Add tomatoes, shredded basil, and coconut milk.  Turn heat down to simmer for 10 minutes.
• Turn heat up to medium.  Add shrimp and peas and cook just until shrimp turn from translucent to pink, 5 minutes or less.
• Stir in lime juice and taste.  Add salt/pepper if needed (I didn't but it depends on your curry paste/powder and your taste buds).
• Serve over rice or with naan, garnished with lime wedge and diced basil.

I served this with brown basmati rice that I made earlier in the day and kept warm in the rice cooker. Enjoy!

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Recipe for Thai Shrimp and Veggie Curry

The photo doesn't do this meal justice!  I probably should have worked on the composition a bit more and taken a few other shots but after tasting the curry sauce, I was in a hurry to eat!  So, don't hold the poor quality photo against this recipe-it's a keeper.

Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cut asparagus spears, 1 inch pieces
• 2 cups spinach leaves
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 TBSP fish sauce
• 2 TBSP fresh lime juice
• 24 medium shrimp, cleaned, shelled, tails removed and deveined
• 3 TBSP Thai red curry paste
• Canola oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Fresh mint and lime slices for garnish

Method: 

• Saute onion in oil over medium heat until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add garlic and cook 1 more minute over medium high heat.
• Add curry paste.
• Add coconut milk, fish sauce, and lime juice.
• Bring to boil.  Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.
• Turn down heat to medium, add asparagus and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Add spinach and shrimp; simmer until shrimp turns pink and spinach wilts, about 3 minutes.
• Serve over rice, garnished with chopped mint and lime slices.

This would be good with chicken or beef too.  And seriously, it's "spoon up the left over sauce and slurp it" kind of good!

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