Organic
Thai Green Curry to Freeze.
I make Thai curry in bulk and then freeze
it. I am sure that fresh is better. However, having it in the freezer allows you to make a quick
stir fry or Thai curry dish on work nights throughout the year. This way you can also make the curry
with organic ingredients that are easily available in the summer.
I have
taken several preparation short cuts as well as quadrupling the recipe. I would strongly encourage you to buy the
book “Real Thai” and to follow her recipes if you like Thai food. I grow my own lemongrass is it is expensive
and it is also difficult to get organically grown lemongrass. It is a beautiful grass and very easy to
grow, especially if you buy it as a small plant.
I usually plant at least two clumps.
The other organic ingredients are relatively easy to obtain.
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| I pick lemongrass by pulling on each stalk individually and leaving the rest of the plant intact. |
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| Lemongrass, cilantro (the roots can be used) and kaffir lime leaves |
Imperial
Measurement Notes
1 cup =16
tbsp, so
1/2 cup =
8 tbsp,
1/4 cup =
4 tbsp,
1/8 cup =
2 tbsp
The following quantities are adapted (4 times
recipe on page 169) from “Real Thai” by Nancie McDermott.
Green
Curry
Ingredients
(I use all organically grown)
¼ cup whole coriander seed
4 tsp cumin
20 peppercorns
12 stalks lemongrass
1 cup cilantro
¼ cup ginger
4 tsp lime peel
½ to 3 /4
cup garlic
½ cup shallot
2 cups green chilies ki noo (I use about ½ to 1
cup of whatever peppers I have that are fresh and add heat to the finished dish
instead)
4 tsp salt
4 tsp shrimp paste (this is the only ingredient
that I have not found in organic form)
Preparation
Trim the lemongrass down to
the white part and slice in very thin slices.
Peel approx. 2 limes – make sure to get only the green part of the
skin. Rough chop the lime, cilantro and chilies
if using a food processor. Then in order
to save time, you may grind the lemongrass,
lime peel, cilantro and chilies in a magic bullet or blender until fine and
paste-like. Add this blend to the
mortar. Pound the ingredients together. Chop the ginger, garlic, and shallots as finely as possible. Add all of these ingredients to mortar and pound until broken down and paste-like. The garlic, ginger and shallots could get bitter when prepared with a food processor, so I try to pound them by hand when I have time.
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| Chopped Lemongrass |
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| Lime Peel |
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| Add lemongrass, lime skin, and chilies to a food processor. |
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| Roast the dry spices |
| Curry Ingredients in a mortar and pestle |
Put all of the dry spices into a pan (pepper, coriander, and cumin) and roast
for a few minutes on medium heat until you can smell them. Put them into a spice grinder with the salt (I use the magic bullet with a
grinder wheel) and grind until fine. Add
to the mortar. Add the shrimp paste. Pound
the ingredients together again.
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| Kaffir lime tree - cut up the leaves and use in Thai curry |
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| Kaffir lime and leaf. |
Note
that I often add a few kaffir lime leaves from my own tree. Treat them as you would the lime peel.
Freeze in ¼ inch or so layers in bags so that
the paste can be broken off and used as needed.
