Yeah, I have no regrets on that awful title. Mild regrets. But hey, look at this deliciously distracting picture of food!

This post is the last of 3 exceptional requests from the birth of this blog.

Wings happened.

Northern Italian Lasagna happened.

If you didn’t gather from the title, this dish is a Thai Panang Curry. I’ve experimented with curries in the past and they almost always come out right.

When I got my first apartment, I bought one of those huge plastic spice containers of yellow curry powder and I made great use of it. My culinary sorcery culminated in a weekly curryish meal that delved in the realm of chicken, potatoes, curry, IPA and honey. I’ll add this soon, because until this request I actually forgot about this ingenious bowl of deliciousness I poured over jasmine rice.

But let’s not stray too far down the rabbit hole just yet.

Thai Panang Curry , based on my research, is a classic and highly regarded Thai dish. I want to pay it the appropriate level of homage, so here we go.

It looks like there’s a lot going on with the ingredients but it’s actually pretty simple and flavorful.

Like most dishes I post, you can sub in your protein of choice. A lot of the recipes I sifted through called for tofu. I went with chicken thighs. I cut the bones out but left the skin on.

Here’s where I deviated from protocol and let my cooking experience take over. I made a dry rub for the chicken with ginger powder, basil, salt and pepper. The skillet was heating up with some coconut oil to sear the chicken and add a rich, crispy exterior. Leaving the skin on was key here.

Normally, you’d want to cook up the veggies in another pan to keep the curry looking clean, but I opted to fry them in the drippings and let the curry take on a dirty look. Rustic might be a good way to put it. It’s gritty and real. And super flavorful.

While the peppers and onions were soaking up all that goodness, I sliced the chicken and added it back into the mix.

Now you’re ready to add the curry sauce. Coconut milk, red curry paste, soy sauce, peanut butter, fish sauce, lime juice. All those wonderful pieces traditional to Thai cooking are used to construct this light but potent sauce.

Simmer the chicken and veggies in their curry bath for a bit and make sure you have some rice ready to serve with it.

Once ready, add a heaping spoonful of rice to a bowl and smother it with the curry, and don’t forget to add some extra sauce for the rice to soak up.

I recommend jazzing it up with some Sriracha and garnishing with fresh cilantro!

Recipe:

Chicken & Veggies:
– 4 chicken thighs, bones removed
– 1 red bell pepper, sliced
– 1 green bell pepper, sliced
– 1 red onion, sliced
– 2 tbsp. coconut oil
– 1 tbsp. ground ginger
– 1 tbsp. garlic powder
– 1 tbsp. dried basil
– Salt & pepper

Curry sauce:
– 1 unsweetened coconut milk
– Juice of 2 limes
– Zest of 2 limes
– 3 tbsp. red curry paste
– 2 tbsp. soy sauce
– 2 tbsp. peanut butter
– 2 tbsp. brown sugar
– 1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
– 1 tbsp. fish sauce
– 1 tbsp. garlic powder

Rice:
– 2 cups of jasmine rice, cooked

Instructions:
Cook your rice first so it’s ready. I do mine in a rice cooker. Mix the 5 spices from the chicken & veggies section in a small bowl. Rub the spice mix all over the chicken. Heat a large skillet to medium heat with the coconut oil. Sear the chicken for 8-10 minutes per side or until cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan.

Add the veggies and cook for approximately 10 minutes to soften them slightly. While the veggies are cooking, mix all the ingredients in the curry section together and put aside. Slice the chicken and add it back into the pan with the veggies. Add the curry sauce and stir. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add rice to a bowl, top with curry mixture and garnish as desired with cilantro and Sriracha. Enjoy!