One-Pot Curry

One-Pot (or slow-cooker) Curry

Curry is one of those things that people get intimidated to cook when in reality it's one of the most simple things to make and can be totally customized to you likes. I started dabbling in the Thai food realm about seven years ago. I discovered how much I liked curry after trying a local Thai restaurant but as a poor recent graduate preferred to spend the same amount of money to buy ingredients for about 6 servings of curry as I would to purchase one plate at said restaurant. So I started doing some research and after countless batches and about 25 different techniques I can tell you this: THIS ONE IS THE EASIEST AND THE BEST ONE OUT THERE. 

If you aren't familiar with curry then you should know that all curry has some level of spice (when you are buying paste ready-made and not making it yourself - bc girlfriend ain't got time for that). In general Yellow or Massaman curry are the most mild, Red and Panang are in the middle and Green or Kang Kua are the hottest. My favorite brand of curry paste is Maesri which I pick up at the Asia Supermarket (yes, this is what it's actually called) in Chinatown in Philly but you can get it on Amazon or other online retailers. Here are my three favorites:

These pastes have amazing flavor on their own but I find a tiny bit of tweaking really brings them to the next level. I prefer my curry on the sweeter side so I add in some brown sugar while it's cooking but that's a personal preference. I also like LOTS of ginger so I add in about 1/2 cup of chopped ginger to one batch of curry. Curry can also be customized in terms of protein and vegetables. My husband and I prefer to use cubed brisket in curry but you can use chicken, shrimp or leave it vegetarian and it will still be delicious. You will obviously adjust the cooking time and this one slow simmers for at least 5 hours to allow the beef to get nice and tender. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 - 2 pounds brisket, cubed and fat layer removed
• 1 can curry paste of choice
• 4 cans coconut milk (I prefer regular but you can get reduced fat)
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1.2 cup small diced fresh ginger (if using prepared pureed ginger from a jar use 1/4 cup)
• 2 medium leeks, halved, small diced and cleaned
• 1 red pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 zucchini, quartered and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• Rice, cooked according to package directions

Directions:

1. Heat a heavy bottom soup pot over medium-high heat and add spray with cooking spray or add 1 tbsp oil. Add beef in single-layer batches and brown on all sides, removing from pot when finished. Repeat until all beef is browned on all sides.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low and add in ginger to saute for several minutes until fragrant. 
3. Add in curry paste, coconut milk, soy sauce and brown sugar. Stir to combine all ingredients and taste for adjustments. 
4. Add beef back into curry (along with juice collected in the holding bowl) and bring to a simmer. Once curry is simmering reduce heat to low and cook with lid vented for 4-5 hours until beef is tender, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pot every 30ish minutes. 
5. 30 minutes before you are ready to serve add in leeks, pepper and zucchini and turn heat up to medium, stir every few minutes. Make rice according to package directions. 
6. Serve with rice on the side or in the middle of a wide but shallow soup bowl. Enjoy!