I always say that whatever I put into a dish, I want to get it back – I want to taste all the ingredients, so everything should be there for a reason. For me, this is the perfect way to eat aubergine, green beans and tofu. You can use any veg you like but cook hard veg like carrots or squash longer than soft veg like broccoli, green beans and aubergine. It’s comforting to eat when you’ve had enough meat for the week.
Serves 4
4 garlic cloves, chopped
3 shallots, chopped
3 fresh green chillies, chopped
2 lemongrass stalks, chopped
a thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
a thumb-sized piece of galangal, peeled and chopped
a large handful of fresh coriander (leaves and stems)
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp fine sea salt
FOR THE CURRY:
1 block of tofu, cubed
2 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for deep-frying
1 shallot, chopped
1 tsp grated garlic
2–3 lime leaves, torn
juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp fine sea salt
1 x 400ml tin of full-fat coconut milk
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 carrot, chopped
½ small squash, chopped
a handful of broccoli florets
a handful of green beans, chopped
½ aubergine, chopped
TO FINISH:
1 lime leaf, shredded
juice of ½ lime
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp fish sauce
TO SERVE:
boiled jasmine rice
To make the spice paste, blend all the ingredients until smooth in a high-speed blender or crush them together in a pestle and mortar. You need only 4 tablespoons for this curry, so save the rest for another dish.
Deep-fry the tofu until it’s golden brown all over. Drain on kitchen paper and set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large saucepan on a medium heat. Add the shallot, garlic and lime leaves and cook for 2 minutes, until fragrant. Add 4 tablespoons of the green spice paste and the other tablespoon of oil and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add the lime juice, sugar, fish sauce and salt and cook for 30 seconds, then stir in the coconut milk and soy sauce. Turn the heat up to high and add the carrot and squash (or any hard veg you’re using). Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer for 8–10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until reduced slightly.
Add the broccoli, green beans and aubergine (or any soft veg you’re using). Simmer for 5 minutes, then add the tofu to heat it through. Keep cooking until the sauce is nice and thick – it should be coating the veg, which should all still be holding their shape. When my mother cooks this dish she will reduce the sauce a little bit more than usual to allow all the flavour from the green curry to bind nicely with the vegetables.
Finish with the shredded lime leaf, lime juice and a final teaspoon each of sugar and fish sauce. I serve this with jasmine rice because it has more starch and is a little stickier than other kinds of rice, so it works beautifully to soak up the curry sauce.
From BLASTA BOOKS 11: AGAK-AGAK by Sham Hanifa
Illustration (c) Nicky Hooper