Trying Thai!

I am so excited about this post because tonight I made my first ever Thai dish!  I made Giada's veggies in yellow curry, and it was a great experience!  I had gotten the yellow curry in the Strip over the summer for like 2 bucks, and ended up spending about $4.50 on two cans of coconut milk at Giant Eagle.  I know it wouldn't be that expensive at an Asian food market.  In any case, those ingredients, along with two chicken breasts I added, were enough for five big servings.  (Side note - I now have two full weeks of lunches in my freezer!  Woot!)

The only changes I made to the recipe are: I used about six tablespoons of the yellow curry instead of the said 1/2 cup; I omitted the Serrano chili because I figured the curry paste would be spicy enough for me (it was); and I left out the lime leaves because I couldn't find any.  When I make this again, I'll make sure to go to the Strip and get those lime leaves, because the dish was just missing a little "something."

Those of you who know me well know that I'm not a spicy food person.  I love buffalo wings with blue cheese, and I enjoy mexican food, but the spice needs to be mild for me to enjoy it.  That being said, I've had curry now four times, and it is by far the spiciest food I've ever had.  But the fact that I like it enough to buy all those weird ingredients (fish sauce) to make it myself might be a sign that I'm coming around to spicy foods!

And now for the pictures!

The curry paste actually came in a bag inside of the container.  You can see it 

peeking around the corner on the right side of the coconut milk.

Was able to find this at Giant Eagle for about $2.50.  But it is stinky

and super potent.  And boy does it taste and smell like unpleasant fish!

But I guess it just adds depth of flavor to the dish since you only add a tablespoon.

It's not really "yellow"

My dinner!  I also ate several ... several ... spoonfuls of the curry straight out of the pot about 20 minutes after I'd finished my plate.  I made 1 dry cup of rice, which I used with four dishes (one for my dinner and the other three went in the freezer).  But I have enough curry left over for two more medium-sized portions, so I'll probably make some more rice tomorrow for lunch.

If you're scared to try making this, don't be!  If curry paste freaks you out, it shouldn't.  Some ingredients in the yellow curry are lemongrass, basil, and chili pepper.  Really, I don't do spicy, but I love this stuff!  The coconut milk is what makes it for me.  The potato was creamy, the carrots were soft and sweet, and everything just melded so well together.

I hope maybe I've encouraged you to branch out and try cooking something you never have before!  Have fun!