Thai curry again and again!

Y'know, there's been talk. I haven't been talking, but there has been talk* concerning my fantastic new green Thai curry recipe.

One of the best things about the Taste of London festival was the free brochure, featuring recipes from some of the attending restaurants. I've been interested in learning how to make a good green curry for a while (because I like it but find restaurant versions too hot for my preference). So I was pleased to see that the Blue Elephant had published their recipe in the brochure.

Of course, I shamefully adapted it and took a few ideas from delicious magazine's 'freeze ahead' version too. This recipe should make enough for four modest portions, so if you're cooking for two you can freeze one batch and easily heat it in the microwave later.

I make mine with chicken, so my first step is to cut two large breasts (no comment) into chunks and fry it over a low-ish heat in a big wok, with a bit of vegetable oil. Once it's starting to look a bit cooked, I add three tablespoons (45ml) of green curry paste. This is the only cheaty bit of the recipe: I use ready-made paste, to save all the effort of grinding and blending! The quality of shop-bought pastes varies quite a bit, as does the amount of chilli they use, so shop around until you find one you like.

Anyway - once the paste and chicken starts sizzling happily I add four or five chopped spring onions, half a chopped red onion and one stalk (stem?) of lemongrass cut very finely. You can also add some aubergine or other appropriate vegetables at this stage. After another couple of minutes, add a 400g tin of coconut milk and let the whole thing simmer for 5-10 minutes.

At this stage, add the juice of a whole lime, one torn kaffir lime leaf, a handful of basil leaves and a pinch of fresh coriander. Give it a stir - at this point it should be rather thin. My 'freeze ahead' addition here is to add 100g of ground almonds to thicken and make it go further, but this is a bit calorie-tastic! Without the almonds it may only make two portions rather than four, but it won't be as fattening. If it looks a bit gloopy once you've added the almonds, stir in a few splashes of water until it looks about the right consistency.

And that's you done: serve it with some steamed rice and Thai crackers.

*A bun for anyone who recognises the film reference and isn't ashamed to admit it!