Thai Green Curry with Summer Veggies and Crispy Tofu

One day I’ll get around to developing a recipe for homemade curry paste that blows the store-bought stuff out of the water. Until then, I’ll keep using curry paste in a jar. It packs a punch of spicy flavor and turns a pile of vegetables and a can of coconut milk into a sumptuous sauce in no time. I was inspired this week by the tender-crisp green beans and the perfect Asian eggplant that showed up in CSA boxes for the first time. However, feel free to use this recipe as a basic guideline, swapping in whatever vegetables and proteins fit your tastes and refrigerator best.

Thai Green Curry with Summer Veggies and Crispy Tofu

Ingredients

• A handful of Veggies- I used:
  • 1 Asian Eggplant, sliced into rounds or diced into 3/4-inch pieces
  • 1 cup Green Beans, stems removed and chopped into 1 inch pieces)
  • 1 medium Summer Squash, halved lengthwise, then cut into semi-circle pieces
  • 1 fresh Sweet Onion, halved and sliced
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms
• 1-inch piece fresh ginger, grated
• 3 tablespoons green curry paste (I use Thai Kitchen brand)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 pound extra-firm Tofu (swap out for shrimp or chicken if you or your loved ones aren’t so into the tofu thing)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• Coconut oil for frying, about 1/2 cup
• 2 cups cooked brown rice

Steps:

-In a large saucepan or dutch oven, sautee veggies and mushrooms in 1 tablespoon coconut oil until soft and starting to brown. Add grated ginger. Cook for 1 minute. Set aside and wipe out pan.

-Drain the block of tofu and press it between a clean dish towel to squeeze out excess moisture. Cut into 1 inch pieces. Toss with cornstarch to coat all sides. Heat the remaining oil until it sizzles. Fry tofu, in batches if necessary, for about 3 minutes per side–until golden brown and crispy. Set aside tofu and discard oil.

– Mix curry paste, brown sugar, and coconut milk in the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer. Just before serving, stir in veggies and tofu. Serve over brown rice. Garnish with chopped basil or basil microgreens.