Thai Green Curry with Chicken, Broccoli, and Mushrooms

Categories: Poultry

Ingredients

• 2 (14-ounce) cans coconut milk (unsweetened), not shaken
• 1/2 cup green curry paste (related recipe), or 2 tablespoons store-bought green curry paste
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts , trimmed of excess fat and sliced thin (see below)
• Table salt
• 2 1/2 cups broccoli florets (about 6 ounces)
• 4 ounces white mushrooms (or shitakes), stems discarded and mushrooms quartered (about 2 cups)
• 1 medium red bell pepper , stemmed, seeded, and cut into thin strips
• 1 large chile (hot), stemmed, seeded, and quartered lengthwise (optional)
• 1 tablespoon lime juice from 1 lime
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves

Directions

1. Carefully spoon off about 1 cup of the top layer of cream from one can of coconut milk — this layer will be thick and possibly solid. Place the coconut cream and curry paste in a large Dutch oven and bring to a simmer over high heat, whisking to blend, about 2 minutes. Maintain this brisk simmer and whisk frequently until almost all of the liquid evaporates, 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-high and whisk constantly until the cream separates into a puddle of colored oil and coconut solids, 3 to 8 minutes. (You should hear the curry paste starting to fry in the oil.) Continue cooking until the curry paste is very aromatic, 1 to 2 minutes.

2. Whisk in the remaining coconut milk, the fish sauce, and the brown sugar. Bring back to a brisk simmer and cook until the flavors meld and the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Season the chicken with salt and add it to the pot, stirring until the pieces are separated and evenly coated with the sauce, about 1 minute. Stir in the broccoli and mushrooms and bring back to a brisk simmer over medium heat. Cook until the vegetables are almost tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the bell pepper and fresh chile, if using, and cook until the vegetables are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the lime juice, basil, and mint. Serve immediately.

3. EP BY STEP: Cutting Chicken Breast into Strips – 1. Separate the tenderloins (the long floppy pieces of meat) from the breasts and set them aside. 2. Slice the breasts across the grain into long, thin strips. The center pieces need to be cut in half so that they are approximately the same length as the end pieces. 3. Cut the tenderloins on the diagonal to produce pieces the same size as the strips of breast meat.

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