Heartwarming Fall Curry
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been a fan of Asian cuisine. I love the fresh vegetables, herbs, noodles, and rice. I didn’t fall in love with something a little more on the spicy side until I met my wife. Now I eat a curry two to three times a month. Either I’m going for a lunch meeting with my mate Nick to our favorite Indian restaurant Sangam run by an ex-student of mine, or I’m making one at home for the boys. They also like a little spice every now and again. This time of year when things are getting a touch cooler, a curry in the evening works really well. There’s nothing better than a bowl of curry outside on the deck with a roaring fire going, wrapped in blankets, and chatting about the day or what’s happening at the weekend.
This dish is easy. Once you have seared the chicken then it’s a matter of throwing everything into one pot and letting it simmer while you get the blankets out, start the fire and arrange the chairs. So turn on the outside lights, get comfortable, and enjoy a curry night with the family.
Heartwarming Fall Curry
Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons ghee or olive oil
1x 3lb whole chicken cut into 8 pieces or 8 chicken thighs, thigh bone removed
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 red onion, peeled and finely sliced
6 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 lemon grass stalk , outer stem removed, inner stem minced
4 tablespoons yellow curry paste
2 cups low in sodium chicken stock
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
2 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro
1x 14oz package of rice noodles
1 lime cut into four
How to make:
Using a cast iron pan, melt the ghee over a high heat, season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, add the chicken, skin side down to the pan when the ghee starts to lightly smoke, turn down the heat and allow the skin of chicken to crisp for 4 minutes, then turn each piece over and cook for another 4 minutes, then remove from the pan and place on dish paper.
Add the onions to the pan and cook for 4 minutes, then add the garlic, lemon grass and curry paste, allow to simmer for 2 minutes before whisking in the stock and coconut milk. Re-add the chicken pieces, place on lid or a piece of foil, bring to the boil then turn down to a simmer, cook for a further for 20 to 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked all the way through.
Just before the chicken is ready to serve, cook the noodles according to the package instructions, then toss them into a large bowl with a little of the curry sauce to stop them from sticking, divide the noodles between four bowls.
Stir the cilantro into the curry, then place 2 pieces of thigh meat on top of each bowl of noodles, ladle over the remaining curry sauce and serve with a lime wedge to squeeze over.