It’s Christmas week. The boy is only working a half day
today so I want to make him a lunch that is both light and warming.
1tbsp oil
3tbsp Thai red curry paste
750ml chicken stock
1tsp grated lime zest
1tbsp shredded ginger
1 head pak choy, quartered
500g raw king prawns, peeled
3tbsp lime juice
1tbsp Nam Pla (fish sauce)
1 red chilli, thinly sliced
Coriander leaves to garnish
Jasmine rice to serve
It’s a dark grey day, so I’m putting on some misattributed
Haydn string quartets to lighten the mood. This recipe is so quick, that I
should barely get through one quartet.
The boy usually needs filling up so I’m serving this with
rice on the side. I’m not rinsing it, so that it remains sticky. It just goes
in the rice cooker (aka the kitchen god).
Start by gently
frying off the curry paste in the oil, to release the aroma. A decent brand,
will be thick and almost dryish. Add the stock, lime zest and ginger. If the prawns were whole and unpeeled I would
add some heads and shells too. Bring to the boil and simmer for just a few
minutes. If you have been lucky enough to use prawn heads and shells, fish them
out.
Add the pak choy, chilli and raw prawns and cook until the
prawns are pink – just another few minutes. Season with the fish sauce and lime
juice. I’m not as keen on fish sauce as the boy is, though I do like
Worcestershire sauce, which surely has the same derivation. Taste and adjust to suit. Sometimes a little
sugar will rebalance it. Sprinkle with coriander.
The boy is happy to have a two bowl lunch – one of the soup
and one of rice. He has found an oily garlic pickle to have with the rice. We
have grown our own this year – far too much and it has put me in mind of trying
to pickle some of it Asian style…..
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