QUICK THAI PRAWN CURRY

Preparation time 15 mins Cooking time 10 mins Serves 4

5cm piece of ginger, peeled,

roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled,

roughly chopped

2 small red chillies

2 Tbsp fried shallots

½ tsp sea-salt flakes and freshly

ground black pepper, to season 1½ heaped Tbsp tom yum paste 30ml vegetable or peanut oil 12 green prawns, mid-section peeled, deveined, tails and heads on

400ml organic coconut cream 200ml water

1½ Tbsp palm sugar

4 kaffir lime leaves

3 Lebanese or 1 telegraph cucumber, skinned in stripes and cut into chunks

1 packet vermicelli rice

noodles, cooked

Thai basil, Vietnamese mint and

coriander leaves, to serve Salted beer nuts with skin,

to serve

Prawn crackers, to serve

STEP 1 Put ginger, garlic and chilli in a mortar and pestle and grind to a paste. Add fried shallots, salt and pepper, then pound again. Add tom yum paste and oil and stir to combine.

STEP 2 Pour into a large heavy-based frying pan set over medium heat and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Push paste to side of pan and add prawns. Cook for 2 minutes on each side then remove prawns from pan and set aside.

STEP 3 Add coconut cream, water, palm sugar and lime leaves to pan and simmer for 3 minutes. Return prawns to pan and simmer for a further 2 minutes, then stir in cucumber at the very last minute.

STEP 4 Pile noodles in 4 bowls, chop them with a pair of scissors and top with prawn curry. Scatter with herbs and salted beer nuts and serve with prawn crackers and remaining nuts.

Curry in a hurry

– like this spicy seafood beauty – is the ultimate crowd pleaser

Quick Thai prawn curry