Thai Red Curry with Duck and Pineapple

Thai Red Curry with Duck and Pineapple

Recipe only


This is a fantastic dish with the succulent meat of roast duck and the contrasting flavor of pineapple. It is better to make your own curry pastes; make more than you need and you can freeze it for future use. This dish makes it easy with just buying the roast duck in Chinatown or a place you know sells roast duck. This is sure to become one of your favorite Thai dishes. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

250 ml (1 cup) coconut cream
60 ml (1/4 cup) vegetable oil
200 g good quality red curry paste (see below)
4 kaffir lime leaves
60 ml (1/4 cup) fish sauce
2 tablespoons palm sugar, grated
500 ml (2 cups) coconut milk
1 Chinese roast duck, boned and cut into 2 cm chunks
3 long red chilies, halved length ways, seeds removed
160 g chopped fresh pineapple
good handful Thai basil leaves
1 fresh lime, to squeeze


METHOD

Red curry paste

18 dried red chilies, roughly chopped and stems removed (soak in hot water for 20 minutes first)
1/3 cup small dried shrimp, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons, chopped coriander root
1 1/2 teaspoons of sea salt
8 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
6 small Asia shallots (Asian shallots are red in color), roughly chopped
6 lemongrass stalks, trimmed and white part only, bruised and finely sliced
1/4 inch piece of krachai, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 inch piece galangal, peeled and thinly sliced

1. Make the paste; Place the chilies in hot water for 20 minutes to soften up, then drain and dry. Reserve about 5 tablespoons of the chili water. Place the chilies in a small food processor with the dried shrimp, coriander root, salt, garlic, Asian shallots, lemongrass, krachai, and galangal; pulse until roughly chopped, add the chili water, and puree until smooth. Set 1/2 cup aside; you can keep it for another dish in the fridge or freeze for future use.

To make the curry

1. In a frying pan over high heat, bring the coconut cream and vegetable oil to the boil, stirring continuously so that it does not burn. When the coconut cream 'splits' (the oil separates from the solids), add the curry paste. Crush the lime leaves in your hand, add them to the pan and fry until all the aromas rise from the paste and it is sizzling fiercely. This will take 10-15 minutes (use your nose). Add the fish sauce and cook for 1 minute. Then add the palm sugar and coconut milk and bring to the boil. Add the duck and chilies and simmer gently until the duck has heated through (about 4 minutes), then add the pineapple. Stir in the basil with a little squeeze of lime juice before serving with steamed jasmine rice.