Vietnamese Yellow Curry

 Vietnamese Chicken Curry

3-5 lb chicken thighs or turkey parts with bone in (can sub other meat or tofu here, I've used boneless, skinless chicken breast, too)

¼ c chopped garlic

⅓ c chopped lemongrass

½ c sugar

4 T chicken bouillon

¼ c MSG (optional)

½ c Vietnamese curry powder

Combine the ingredients with the meat and set aside for at least 4 hours to overnight.

Olive oil, enough to cover bottom of deep pan with ¼”

2 ½ T chopped garlic

2 cans Coco Rico

3 cans coconut cream

2 T Vietnamese curry powder

10 whole keffir lime leaves

10-15 dried chilies

water to cover, about 4 cups

4 pieces of fresh lemongrass pounded and tied in a bundle

2-3 lg carrots, cut in 2” pieces

1 peeled taro root, cut in 2” pieces

1 peeled sweet potato, cut in 2” pieces

Lightly fry the carrot, taro, and sweet potato in a small amount of oil, if a firmer texture is desired until you are just able to pierce with a fork and set aside on paper towels to drain. 

Coat a deep fry pan with about ¼ “ of olive oil and heat. Add meat with plenty of space between pieces and sear all sides. You may need to do multiple batches.

Put a large stockpot on low heat and add oil, garlic, and curry powder Take care to not let it burn. Add chicken and two cans of Coco Rico, dried chilies, lemongrass bundle and whole kefir lime leaves. Add enough water to cover meat and veggies, around 4 cups in my pot. Simmer until the meat is cooked through about 15-20 minutes. 

Add coconut cream, taro root, sweet potato, and carrot and simmer a few more minutes. Adjust seasoning with bouillon and sugar. Remove from heat.

Stir in:

2 white onions, cut into wedges and separated

Serve with:

6 kefir lime leaves, shredded on top

with French baguette, noodles, or rice to soak up that delicious broth

Lightly frying taro root and other root veg in batches

Marinated chicken after several hours



Sautéed chicken before adding CoCo Rico to loosen up the fond

Kofta for a Crowd - Award Winning Recipe from Curry Clash 2015

This is Khamisa Abdulla's winning recipe in the amateur category for the Asian Community & Cultural Center's Curry Clash 2015. This makes a large amount to serve to a big crowd.

5 lb ground beef
6 eggs
2 green peppers, chopped and pureed
1 bunch cilantro, chopped including stems
2 T pureed garlic paste
1 sm can tomato paste
2 T freshly ground cardamom pods, most of the husks removed
1 c oil
3 T beef bouillon granules
2 T salt
1 T ground pepper
1 Knorr Beef cube
6 c cooked rice, cooled
4 c mashed potato flakes
1 T baking powder
2 -3 T curry powder

Turn oven on to 400 degrees. Add all of the  above to a large bowl. Mix well with your hands. Put a small amount of oil in a dish and oil your fingers. Take about 3 T of beef mixture into your hand and form it into a log shape about 3" long. Place the logs on a rimmed baking sheet. Once the baking sheet is full, put it in the oven for about 15-20 minutes until the tops have lightly browned. Repeat until all of the beef mixture is cooked. Put cooked kofta in a deep baking dish.

Sauce:
2 sm cans of tomato paste
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 c water
1 T ground cardamom
1 T cumin
2 T salt
Simmer sauce over medium heat while you cook the kofta. Sauce should be thick enough to just coat the kofta. You may have to thin with additional water.

Once all the kofta is cooked and put into several deep pans. Evenly distribute the sauce over the meat, tossing to coat.  Seal pans with foil and put into the oven to steam for 10-15 minutes.

Enjoy!