Thai green curry is a favourite in our household. It’s full of flavour, protein, greens and it can be served with rice or a salad depending on the time of day. (I try and get most of my carbohydrates in before lunch so I can burn them off at the gym in the evening.)

There are three elements to this dish. The curry itself, the sides and the paste. This recipe uses a paste which has been created from scratch. If you choose to buy a jar of ready-made green paste, be careful because some brands contain lots of extras like refined white sugar and even shellfish.

Paste Ingredients:

1 stalk lemongrass, thinly sliced, OR 3 Tbsp. frozen prepared lemongrass

1/4 can coconut milk

1-3 Thai green chilies OR jalapeno

1 large bunch chopped coriander leaves & stems

1 shallot, chopped

4-5 cloves garlic

1 thumb-size piece ginger, sliced

1 Tbsp. soy sauce

2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. ground coriander

1/2 tsp. ground white pepper (available in most supermarket spice aisles)

1/2 tsp. sea salt

Side Ingredients:

A handful of alfalfa/radish sprouts

1 carrot

1 courgette

White rice

A sprinkle of fresh or dried coriander

Curry Ingredients:

1 + 1/2 cups medium-firm tofu, cubed, OR canned chickpeas (your choice)

1 green bell pepper, chopped into bite-size pieces

1 packet of chopped green beans

3/4 can coconut milk

250ml vegetable stock

A generous sprinkle of basil

Method:

1)      Place all ‘paste’ ingredients in a food processor or blender and blitz to create a fragrant green curry paste.

2)      Place a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 1-2 Tbsp. oil and swirl around, then add all the green curry paste you just made. Stir-fry 1 minute to release the fragrance.

3)      Add the tofu or chickpeas. Stir-fry until well saturated with sauce.

4)      Add the stock. Stir and reduce heat to medium-low. Gently simmer 5 minutes.

5)      Add the coconut milk, plus vegetables and continue simmering 5-7 minutes, or until softened. Then turn the heat to the lowest setting and allow the flavours to infuse.

6)      In the meantime, place your preferred amount of white rice into a pan of boiling water and follow the cooking instructions on the back of the pack. Drain and mix with some chopped coriander.

7)      Place your sprouts on the plate.

8)      Grate the carrot and courgette into strips. (I used the blender grater function for this to save time.)

9)      To get them into nice balls, place them into a small bowl and place upside down on the plate. Remove and they will stay in place. The same applies to the rice if you wish.

10)   Now it’s time to plate up the curry and enjoy!