Chicken Curry Rice

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons canola or peanut oil (I used Canola)
1 onion—finely chopped
2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste
2 cloves garlic—finely chopped
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 zucchini (courgette)—sliced into thin rounds
1 red pepper (capsicum)—julienned
1 cup Minute-Rice
12 oz (360g) uncooked skinless chicken breast fillets—cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tablespoons cornstarch (cornflour) mixed to a paste with 2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 large fresh basil leaves—finely sliced

Step 1:

Cut up the onions, zucchini, red pepper, and mince the garlic first. This will make things easier, especially for someone like me who has limited room to work with.

Step 2:

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat.

Add the onions and sautee for about five minutes until they start to get soft.

Step 3:

Add the curry paste and garlic, stir until it's evenly distributed and cook for about a minute. I found that two teaspoons of curry made this dish plenty spicy; if you've got a weak tongue, add less. Also, watch out for the fumes that will BURN THE YOUR EYES.

Step 4:

Add the coconut milk, chicken stock, fish sauce, sugar and salt, and bring it to a boil.

Step 5:

Add the zucchini and red pepper, cover and simmer for about 12 minutes. In the meantime, cook your rice. I used instant rice, but you can use any type you want.

Step 6:

After the 12 minutes, add the chicken, cover, and cook for another 8 minutes. In the meantime, make the cornstarch paste by mixing two tablespoons of water with two tablespoons of cornstarch until smooth. Once 8 minutes are about up, chop up your basil.

Step 7:

After the 8 minutes, add the cornstarch mixture and stir until the curry thickens. Add the lemon juice and basil and stir.

Step 8:

Serve on a bed of rice.