The next dish in our High Heel Gourmet-inspired Thai feast was this simple but oh so tasty stir-fried chicken and eggplant with red curry paste. This was actually one of the tastiest Thai dishes I have prepared so far. The eggplant soaks up the curry flavor and it all works beautifully together. Making our own Thai curry paste from scratch really paid off with this recipe. The Kaeng Pa curry paste used in this recipe is enriched with cumin and coriander.

As usual, I used boneless and skinless chicken thigh meat instead of chicken breast, as it has more flavor and is more juicy. If you can’t find Chinese eggplant, according to Miranti you can also make this with regular eggplant.

Ingredients

For 4 servings

500 grams (1.1 lb) boneless skinless chicken thigh meat

800 grams (1.8 lb) Chinese eggplant

3 Tbsp Kaeng Kua red curry paste

1 Tbsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

4 Tbsp fish sauce

salt

1 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp kaffir lime leaves, chiffonaded

40 grams Thai basil, leaves picked

3 Tbsp coconut oil

120 ml (1/2 cup) thin coconut milk (or water)

Preparation

If you already have 3 tablespoons of Kaeng Kua Thai red curry paste, you can change it into Kaeng Pa by adding a tablespoon of ground coriander and a teaspoon of ground cumin…

…and stirring it in. For best results, toast coriander and cumin seeds, and grind them yourself. Officially, Kaeng Pa curry paste (also known as ‘jungle’ curry paste) is supposed to have a more coarse texture, but since I already had the Kaeng Kua I did it like this.

Heat 2 Tbsp of coconut oil in a wok and add the curry paste. Stir-fry it until it is fragrant.

Add 500 grams (1.1 lbs) of boneless and skinless chicken thigh meat. Season with salt.

Stir-fry until the chicken is barely cooked, about 2 minutes, then remove it from the wok and reserve.

Add another tablespoon of coconut oil to the wok, and add 800 grams (1.8 lb) of eggplant.

Stir-fry for a minute, then add about 3 Tbsp of fish sauce and 120 ml (1/2 cup) of water or thin coconut milk.

Continue to stir-fry until the eggplant is cooked, about 8 minutes.

Return the reserved chicken to the wok.

Add a tablespoon of chiffonaded kaffir lime leaves, stir-fry briefly, then turn off the heat and add the leaves of 40 grams of Thai basil. Stir to incorporate. Season to taste with palm sugar (about a tablespoon) and fish sauce (about a tablespoon).

Serve on preheated plates with Jasmin rice.

Wine pairing

We enjoyed this with a full-bodied, dry but aromatic gewurztraminer from Alto Adige in Italy.

Flashback

Swordfish combines well with an Italian marinade called Salmoriglio, consisting of extra virgin olive oil, parsley, and lemon juice.