Thai Green Curry (Gaeng Keow Wan)

Method

1. 1Bloom the curry paste. Open the coconut milk without shaking — scoop the thick cream from the top (about 4 to 5 tablespoons) into a wok or wide pan. Heat over medium-high until the cream bubbles and the oil begins to separate and pool on the surface — about 2 minutes. If the cream only bubbles and no oil appears after 3 to 4 minutes (common with coconut milk that contains stabilisers), add the tablespoon of vegetable oil and fry the paste in that instead. Add the green curry paste and stir-fry in the coconut cream for 2 to 3 minutes until intensely fragrant and the paste dries slightly and begins to stick to the pan. This step blooms the spices and cooks out the raw paste flavor.
2. 2Add chicken and build the sauce. Add the chicken pieces and stir to coat in the paste. Cook 1 to 2 minutes. Pour in the remaining coconut milk and the stock. Add the lemongrass and torn kaffir lime leaves. Add the fish sauce and palm sugar. Stir and bring to a simmer.
3. 3Simmer until chicken is cooked. Simmer gently over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Do not boil hard — rapid boiling toughens chicken thighs and can cause the coconut milk to break.
4. 4Add vegetables. Add the eggplant and simmer 3 to 4 minutes until tender but not mushy. Add the snow peas in the final minute. Taste the curry: adjust with more fish sauce for salt, more palm sugar for sweetness. The sauce should be lightly thickened and richly flavoured — not watery.
5. 5Finish and serve. Remove from heat. Stir in the Thai basil leaves — they wilt immediately in the residual heat. Add a squeeze of lime if using. Ladle into bowls. Garnish with sliced red chilli and a few extra basil leaves. Serve immediately with steamed jasmine rice. The kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass are for flavor — warn diners not to eat them.