Spice up your regular dinner meals with this aromatic Thai style poached chicken curry recipe
This poached Thai chicken and pumpkin curry is light and easy to make. Aromas and herbs are used rather than an overabundance of spices, deeming it incredibly fragrant. The poached chicken and pumpkin float in the broth whilst boasting the typical Thai flavours of salty, sweet, sour and hot.
Having a good quality wok makes all the difference for Asian style cooking. Using the Ken Hom Wok will elevate your meal from home cooking to restaurant quality.
Traditionally, woks could only be utilised on a gas stovetop - and you would be lucky if it had any stability not to tip over! The Ken Hom carbon steel wok has a modernised design of a flat bottom to stand easy on any stovetop. The wok is induction cooktop friendly and made from carbon steel, is scratch-resistant and simple to clean!
Woks are not just for stir-frying! Many are under the impression that woks have one use only and this is to withstand high heat. Although this is certainly a benefit for a stir fry, never underestimate the endless cooking possibilities your wok can bring you.
Poaching - Woks are also perfect for poaching such as in the above recipe. The even heat distribution allows for perfect poaching of proteins and vegetables.
Deep Frying - You can also use your wok for deep frying foods such as crispy rice paper rolls or crispy fried golden shallots for the perfect Asian style garnish. Using a wok is very economical as the high sides mean less oil is needed than a frying pan.
Steaming – Add water to the bottom of the wok and a steaming basket on top. Bring the water to a gentle simmer and get the perfect dumplings every time. I also love using this method to steam scallops.
Smoking – Line your wok with foil and place your smoking mixture on top of the foil. This could be wood, tea, coffee, etc. Next, add a steaming basket or wire rack into the wok, directly on top. Heat wok on high and the smoke will penetrate your chosen protein or vegetables on top.
Don’t forget the aftercare of your wok! – Correct aftercare of your wok will ensure it lives a very long life. Never overuse harsh chemical detergents (if any at all) and always lightly oil your wok after use!
Ingredients
- ¼ of a pumpkin
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 bunch of sweet potato leaves and stems (or any Asian leafy greens)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock
- 1 tin coconut cream
- 1 tbsp palm sugar
- 2 tbsp tamarind water pulp
- 2 lemongrass stalks
- 5 slivers galangal
- 5 kaffir lime leaves
- Fish sauce to taste
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
For the curry paste:
- ½ tsp white peppercorns
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 knob ginger
- 1 golden shallot
- 1 long red chilli
- 3 tbsp coriander root
Method
1. To make your curry base, in a food processor blitz together peppercorns, garlic, ginger, shallot, chilli and coriander root into a fine paste.
2. Cube pumpkin and chicken breasts into 2-3cm pieces.
3. In a wok, add your olive oil and heat to a high temperature.
4. Add your curry paste, mixing it around the wok so it doesn’t burn for 1-2 minutes.
5. Mix coconut cream, chicken stock, palm sugar and tamarind into the wok.
6. Turn the wok down to a simmer, pound the lemongrass stalks to release the aromatics, add the lemongrass along with the galangal and lime leaves.
7. Add pumpkin pieces to the liquid and simmer for ten minutes.
8. Add chicken pieces and simmer for a further 5-10 minutes, until just cooked through.
9. Add fish sauce and lime juice to taste.
10. Right at the end, add sweet potato stems and remove the wok from the heat.
11. Serve immediately with steamed Jasmine rice.
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