I love Thai food, but I always worry that what I’m getting is not truly vegetarian. So many recipes call for Fish Sauce and other non-vegetarian items.  I read the menus, ask the waitstaff, and take my chances.   I’ve never tried to make Thai food at home because I thought it was complicated, needed too many expensive, specialty ingredients, and wouldn’t be as delicious as the vegetables dishes I get at my favorite Thai restaurant.

I’m proud to say that I’ve cooked Thai and loved it!  The Thai Kitchen sent me several of their products along with two super-simple recipes to try and I filmed my attempt at Thai food for you (with a few pieces missing  – my Flip is great, it’s operator error).  I prepared Red Curry Chicken (splitting the recipe and making a vegetarian version) and Red Curry Vegetables.  Both were served with a large side of yummy Jasmine rice.

Jasmine rice is a long-grain white rice from Thailand. It cooks in about the same time as regular long grain white rice, but it has a really wonderful nutty flavor.  The grain is larger than the typical white rice.  It’s going to become a pantry staple here – I love it!

The recipe called for Thai Basil which I didn’t have on hand. Thai Basil has red stems and a slightly licorice taste.  I’m sure it would have added great flavor to the dish and I’ll be sure to purchase some next time before preparing the Red Curry Chicken. The entire meal took about 30 minutes to make – super quick and easy for a work night.

Don’t worry if you can’t fine Thai Kitchen products at your store (although they are widely available), you can shop their online store and have it shipped directly to your home. Purchase a selection of their great products for a unique  housewarming or wedding shower gift.

Check out my video – my first ever (mistakes and all) and the recipes below. I’ve noted the changes I made on them because of our personal preferences.

VIDEO – BEGINNING THAI COOKING

Try Thai at home – it’s delicious!

Red Curry Chicken

Thai Kitchen

Prep Time:  10 minutes

Cook Time:  15 minutes

1 can (14 ounces) Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk, divided

2 Tablespoons Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste (We like 0-1 Stars so I used 1/8 tsp which was perfect)

1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar

1 pd cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/4 cup chopped fresh Thai basil

2 tablespoons Thai Kitchen Premium Fish Sauce

1. Bring 1/2 of the coconut milk to simmer in large skillet on medium heat.  Stir in paste until well blended.  Add remaining coconut milk and sugar, bring to boil.  Reduce heat to low, simmer 5 minutes.
2. Stir in cooked chicken.  Cook 3 to 5 minutes or until chicken is heated through.  Stir in basil and fish sauce (for the vegetarian version, remove a portion of the sauce before adding fish sauce.  Add faux chicken of your choice and heat through).
3. Serve with cooked Thai Kitchen Jasmine Rice.  Garnish with additional basil and red chile slices if desire.

Makes 4 servings

Red Curry Vegetables

Thai Kitchen

Prep time:  10 minutes

Cook time:  6 minutes

1 to 2 tablespoons Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste (again, we used 1/8 tsp and that was plenty of heat for us)

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 clove garlic, minced

4 cups assorted vegetables, such as broccoli florets, bell pepper strips, sliced mushrooms, sliced onions and snow peas (we used vegetables we like – onion, snow peas, broccoli, and carrots – totally yummy!)

1. Mix curry paste and water in small bowl until well blended.  Set aside.
2. Heat oil in large skillet on medium-high heat.  Add garlic; stir from 15 seconds.   Add vegetables and curry past mixture; stir fry 3 to 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender crisp.  Taste the vegetables.  If they’re to hot, add more water to tone down the curry paste.

Serve with Jasmine Rice and Red Curry Chicken for a delicious and nutritious Thai meal in under 30 minutes.

Want more Thai recipes? The Thai Kitchen website has a great variety of recipes available as well as cooking tips.  They also offer insight and information on Thai ingredients so you’ll know what you’re looking for when you go shopping.

ENTER TO WIN! WINNER CHOSEN

Thai Kitchens has generously offered Thai Kitchen Cookbooks for two of my readers! The book has over 120 pages of recipes (even veggie ones!) and a glossary of common Thai terms so you’ll know exactly what  curry paste  is and how to cook with lemongrass.

To enter, visit www.realasianmadesimple.com and then comment below with the recipe you’d most like to try. Sorry, US participants only.  Regular contest rules apply. Contest ends June 26, 2009, 8pm PT.

Enjoy!

This review was brought to you by MomFuse.com

Please Note:  Special thanks to the Thai Kitchen for providing me with Fish Sauce, Coconut Milk, Red Curry Paste, and Jasmine Rice.

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