A couple of weeks ago, I stumbled across this post from Snixy Kitchen, a super sassy food blog deliciously compiled by the vibrant Sarah in California. I love love love her stuff, and when I saw this veggie and tofu Thai curry, I knew I had to make it.
True to form, I didn't follow the recipe exactly, and ended up adding/ modifying a bunch of ingredients. I am a fan of working with what we have on hand - especially now that we've started receiving produce from the CSA, it's out of my hands much of the time! - plus, it's just a lot less stressful to improvise and adjust as you go. (Heaven knows I am uber-guilty of accidentally forgetting to add things that the recipe calls for, and it's not until after the meal that I discover the lime/ spice jar/ broth that I should have added hours ago. Oops. Somehow, everything always turns out okay! Cooking is awesome.) :)
Anyways, this adaptation of Sarah's tofu curry is super good (the full version of hers is awesome, too!). The foundation of the dish - actually making the curry - is the same. I love it because it's extra versatile (as you'll see, a whole bunch of extra green things went into this), and it's relatively quick to throw together.
We ended up with several portions of leftovers - both curry and rice - which made for easily packed lunches throughout the week. Who needs takeout? Not you, thrifty homecook! Your stuff is better than takeout anyways, right? Right.
Of Snixy Kitchen's ingredients, I left out: kaffir lime leaves [didn't have them], asparagus [wasn't in season in our area], broccoli [didn't have it], fish sauce [don't love it, and didn't have a vegan alternative prepared], and brown sugar [because I'm off the sweet stuff]. Instead, I swapped in kale and extra baby bok choy [it was readily available at the farmers market], along with onions and green onions from the CSA. We had about 4lbs of green onions last week. I was getting desperate for new things to do with them. This worked out well. :)
Doesn't forbidden black rice make everything look better?! It's such a gorgeous color! As with all grains, it's recommended you soak, drain and rinse before cooking; plus, this helps break down some of the tougher starches in advance AND removes anything from the outside of the grain that may prevent the body from absorbing nutrients. It also allows it cook more quickly.
Cook 1 part black rice in 2 parts water (ie. 1 cup rice: 2 cups water) by bringing it to a boil in a covered pot, reducing heat to a simmer and cooking, covered, for 30-40 minutes. Allow it to rest 5-10 minutes before fluffing with a fork and serving.
I hope this makes it onto your table this week. It's a great way to work in extra greens, a fun use for curry paste, and an excuse to have coconut milk. ;)
Enjoy!
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 2 cups sliced shiitake or baby bella mushrooms
- 3 large kale leaves, stems removed, chopped
- 1 baby bok choy, coarsely chopped (remove thickest part of white stems and compost)
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 2 1/2 tbsp curry paste
- 1 can coconut milk, undisturbed
- 1 8oz package organic extra firm tofu, pressed + drained, then cubed
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper or a pinch of dried Thai chile pepper
- 1 cup uncooked forbidden black rice (or brown or wild rice, if you prefer), soaked overnight, rinsed and drained
- water
- 1. Put your rice on to cook: bring 2 cups water + 1 cup rice to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered ~30minutes.
- 2. Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Add the thick top part of the coconut milk - the cream - and heat until melted.
- 3. Add the curry paste and stir together for about a minute.
- 4. Pour in the remaining coconut milk and bring to a boil. Add scallions. Cook about 2 minutes, then add onions.
- 5. Add tofu, kale, mushrooms and bok choy and reduce heat to simmer. Cook together for about 10 minutes.
- 6. Finish off by adding cayenne pepper, and cook another minute.
- Remove from heat and serve over rice.
Aw – thanks so much for the love! I love your adaptation! And I totally agree, forbidden rice just makes saucy foods look so much better:)
Thank you for the brilliant recipe!! :) It turned out SO well. Coconut milk = magic. I love ‘undisturbed’ as a way of describing. You rock, lady!
I love this! This proves that mushroom is another amazing and indeed
a magical plant. Thank you for sharing those mouth-watering recipe. Will surely give it a try
Amazing!
This looks so delicious and I bet it tastes amazing! My family will love this. I can not wait to try this at home. This is a great way of introducing healthy foods into our menu. Thank you. This is a must-try!