Thai Chicken Curry

Look guys. I made this super satisfying gif of curry simmering. You’re so impressed now. Wait…you’re not? Get out.

Maybe that’s my thing now. Maybe I’ll make gifs of food. Maybe because I just spent $5 on a gif-maker app. Because why fumble around in Photoshop when people make things to make life easier? I definitely weigh cost vs. convenience often. Why make your own sourdough bread when a nice crusty sourdough baguette is only $3 at Whole Foods? It saved me time out of my life, the struggles of sourdough starters and the added benefit of people watching at Whole Foods. There’s really wealthy attractive people there. I mean, they don’t look at me because I’m usually dressed in athletic clothing to give the illusion that I’m athletic and run half marathons or something and the fact that I don’t wear makeup when it isn’t necessary. There are two kinds of people at Whole Foods. The hippieish or hipster employees or the well-dressed wealthy aforementioned attractive people. I kind of just weasel in there and lust after $9 fresh pressed juices, expensive but beautiful vegan donuts and Mr. Professional wielding an AmEx black card for said juice and vegan donuts.
This curry though. Like that’s worth my time. Spicy. It’s not an entirely huge inconvenience. $13 for curry takeout from a Thai restaurant for two or $13 and an hour of my time for enough curry for like…5 people? The opportunity cost of homemade vs. take out curry is worth it. (Also thanks to Mr. Aronow for those econ lessons that actually kind of stuck with me through life.) This is a point in my life where I eat at odd times. I eat out at lunch because restaurants have cheap lunch menus, I eat at happy hour because things are cheap and I also eat at reverse happy hour because things are also cheap. There’s no real reason to eat out if you’re not snagging a deal. Otherwise, make your food at home.

My cost vs. convenience method of living life is just part of my self-proclaimed frugality. I’m sure I could pinch more pennies, save more money, forgo more luxuries…but let’s face it. I also really like the finer things in life. The wallet-centric consciousness of my brain bleeds into all of my life. $200 shoes? They’re comfy. How often will I wear them? Once a week. 52 weeks a year. That’s $3.85 per wear. Would I pay almost $4 every time I wanted to wear that shoe? Yes. Buy the shoe.

I don’t actually know if my reasoning makes sense to anyone but myself, but it’s how I live my life. So.

Thai Curry

1 lb chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces

1 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoons fish sauce

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 tablespoon oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 4 oz. can of Panang curry paste (**I use the whole 4 oz. but that’s a really spicy curry. Use about 2 tablespoons if you prefer a mild curry)

3 cups coconut milk *not the drink kind of coconut milk!*

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon salt

3/4 lb of trimmed fresh green beans

1 can sliced bamboo shoots, drained

1 red bell pepper

2 tablespoons fresh basil, torn

1.  In a bowl, mix chicken pieces, sugar, fish sauce and curry powder. Let sit for 5 minutes.

2.  In pot or large sauté pan, add oil and brown garlic until aromatic. Add curry paste.

3.  Add coconut milk, water, salt and bring to low simmer.

4.  Add marinated chicken to pot, cook on medium heat until chicken is cooked through, about 5-8 minutes.

5.  Add green beans, cook until tender but still have crunch, about 4 minutes. Then add bell pepper, bamboo and basil, simmer for 4 more minutes.

6. Serve with jasmine rice.

Enjoy! Maybe with a glass of iced Thai tea.