Thai Green Curry Paste

I’ve been making this curry paste for the past couple of years using Jo Pratt’s recipe for BBC Food and it never lets me down. It’s so quick to make the curry itself is always a crowd pleaser. You could swap the chicken for a mixture of veggies or prawns would be delicious if you have pescatarians joining you for dinner. This recipe makes enough curry for eight people, but it will also keep in a jar in the fridge for about a month. Blitz it all in a food processor and bob’s your uncle. Find the original recipes for the paste and curry here and here.

• 4-6 medium green chillies, de-seeded and roughly chopped

• 2 shallots, roughly chopped

• a thumb of ginger, peeled and chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed

• small bunch of coriander

• 2 lemongrass stalks, chopped

• 1 lime, zested and juiced

• 8 kaffir lime leaves, (if unavailable, use the grated zest of 1 extra lime)

• 1 tbsp coriander seeds, crushed

• 1 tsp ground cumin

• peppercorns

• 2 tsp of Thai fish sauce or soy sauce

• glug of olive oil

To make the curry, for four people, heat 2 tbsp of the paste with 1 tbsp of soft brown sugar over a high heat. Reduce the heat slightly and stir in the chicken pieces coating them in the paste. Add a tin of coconut milk and a generous shake of soy sauce and the juice of a lime. Cook for 25 - 30 mins on a simmering heat.

Stir in chopped coriander and check for seasoning adding more soy sauce and/or lime if needed. Serve with rice.