Thai Red Chicken Curry with Green Beans, Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

For the Thai red curry paste, put all the ingredients into a food processor with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 tablespoon of water and blend together for 1 minute into a smooth paste.

For the curry, heat the sunflower oil in the Le Creuset Signature Cast Iron Round Casserole over a medium heat. Add the ginger and garlic and cook gently for 2 minutes without letting it brown. Add the curry paste and cook for 3 minutes, occasionally stirring until it starts to smell fragrant. Add the coconut milk, sugar, lime leaves and stock and simmer for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, put the green beans into a pan of boiling salted water and cook for 3 minutes. Drain and refresh under cold water. Drain well.

Stir in the chicken and green beans into the curry and simmer for 4 minutes. Add the cherry tomatoes, bamboo shoots and simmer for a further 2-3 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the tomatoes are just tender.

Skim off the excess oil from the surface of the curry, then stir in the Thai fish sauce, lime juice and a little seasoning to taste. Scatter over the basil leaves and serve with some steamed basmati rice.

Cook's Notes

Adding a couple of tablespoons of the stock to the curry paste will aid its transfer from the blender and protect the spice mix from scorching when added to the hot pan.

Adding warm or hot stock will speed up the simmering process and save time. Heat management is also essential when adding large amounts of liquid, ensure the flame does not exceed the base of the pan. The heat at this point can be increased to speed up the boiling process.

If using a concentrate to make up your stock use a low salt version or make the stock light.