Thai Coconut Shrimp with Coconut Lime Rice
You know those moments when you feel like you need to just break-free and step out of your comfort zone? Yup, that was me with this recipe. I felt so liberated afterwards!
Before we go any further, can I let you in on a honest, little secret? I’ve never cooked Thai food, I’ve never really eaten Thai food, and since we are being honest, I’m not really too sure what constitutes Thai food. I named this recipe Thai Coconut Shrimp Curry because, well, the little green curry paste said it was Thai. It sounds exotic though, doesn’t it? Hey, don’t judge me!
The only reason I even attempted this dish is because a guy at the health food store talked me into buying the green curry when I was looking for coconut milk. He gave me a short briefing on how to use the curry and sent me on my way. It sounded easy enough. Well, you can bet your buns that when I got home and got the courage to make the dish — two weeks later — I could barely remember what he said. Hmm… saute all the veggies then add coconut milk? Or add the coconut milk and then saute veggies. But wait, when do I add the curry and I thought I remembered him saying something about coconut oil… Oi vay.
Any hooo…. I had to rely on my trusty gut instinct while making it, to say the least.
Whhhhaaatttt? Trying a new recipe of a new ethnic background is intimidating! I ended up putting a little bit here, adding a little bit there and just praying it did not turn into a disaster!
My praying worked and the dish turned out ah-may-zing! I wish all experimental dinners turned out this successful.
A word of caution: I am in no way promising that this tastes like authentic Thai food. However, I can promise that it tastes delicious and will satisfy your belly! The flavors of coconut and curry really mesh well together (is that an obvious statement or what?) and they are not too bold. You can add pretty much whatever seasonal veggies you’ve got laying around and I’m sure you could change the shrimp to chicken or beef if you prefer.
My very favorite part about the whole meal is the sauce. It’s so good when poured over rice. Yum!
Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about the rice. I also stepped outside of my box and tried a coconut lime rice. It worked perfectly with this recipe. Just make sure you don’t put too much liquid or else your rice will basically be mush (I’m not going to confirm nor deny that this happened to me, just take my word).
I hope you can also take the leap of faith, step outside your comfort zone and try this out!
Oh and by the way, chopsticks are totally optional!
- large frying pan (where to buy) or wok & medium sized pan
- 1 lb large shrimp, deveined & peeled (wild caught please!)
- 5 tsp green curry paste (where to buy)
- 4 medium organic carrots, sliced
- 1-2 head organic broccolini, cut into small pieces
- 8 oz. organic crimini mushrooms, sliced
- 1 large organic onion, sliced
- 1 cup organic snow peas
- 1 organic squash, sliced
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk (where to buy)
- unrefined sea salt to taste (where to buy)
- 2 Tbl virgin coconut oil (where to buy)
- 2½ cup organic white basmati rice
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 lime + zest
- Make sure all veggies are prepped
- Grab a large pan and turn your burner to medium heat
- Add 1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil and 3 teaspoons green curry paste; mix well & cook for 2 minutes
- Add carrots and broccolini to pan; stir and pour ¼ can of coconut milk; stir well again and cook for 2-3 minutes
- Add the rest of your veggies (mushrooms, onions, squash, snow peas); mix well to combine
- Add the rest of your coconut milk except leaving a little less than an ⅛ of the can
- Season with salt to taste and add 1 more teaspoon green curry paste
- Mix well, and put lid on; cooking for 3-7 minutes depending on how crunchy you like your veggies
- When the veggies are done, take them off the heat
- Meanwhile, in a separate pan, add 1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil and 1 teaspoon green curry paste; mix well & cook for 2 minutes
- Add shrimp plus remaining coconut milk and cook for a couple minutes. You'll want the shrimp almost done because you'll be throwing it into the veggie mix which will make it cook a little longer
- Season your shrimp with salt to taste
- Once shrimp are done, pour shrimp and juice into veggie mixture and stir well
- Add more salt if necessary
- Serve atop coconut lime rice
- Cook rice and coconut milk in a rice cooker until done. Squeeze juice of one lime plus zest; mix well. Top with Thai Coconut Shrimp
