a little spicy, a little sweet, a little nutty, a little coconutty, a lot good

this one is a definite do-try recipe.  i got it from my friend, jen, who has a fabulous cooking blog of her own.  i've changed her recipe around just a smidgen to fit my tastes.  if you love thai food (which i do), if you love spicy, sweet, nuts, coconuts, than you will love this.  it's nice to find a massaman that compares to my favorite at bangkok grill in orem, ut.  move over cafe rio--when i visit utah, i visit bangkok grill (and el azteca for their to.die.for tamales).  but now i can make it from the comforts of my kansas city home.  thanks, jen.  (she also has a tamale recipe on her blog which i MUST try.  who knows--maybe i won't need el azteca any more!)

Massaman Curry 

1/4 onion, cut into pieces

1/2 lb chicken breast, sliced thinly  (i used about 5 chicken tenders.)

3 Tbsp unsalted cashews

8 small yukon gold potatoes, peeled, scored and cut into chunks (scoring is the best word to describe it--drag a fork down the length of it.  it's the way bangkok grill does it.  it helps the veggies hold more of the sauce.)

5 carrots, peeled, scored and cut into 1" chunks on the diagonal (Jen uses yams sometimes.  i'll have to try that next time.)

4 cups water

Brown onion in a little olive oil.  Add chicken and brown it slightly.  Add the rest of the above ingredients and simmer until meat is tender. 

Curry:

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 1/2 Tbsp massaman curry paste (i would definitely err on the side of too little.  some brands are more spicy than others.  you can always add more if it's not spicy enough.)

1/2 cup coconut milk

Heat oil in pan. Stir in curry paste and continue stirring for about 5 minutes.  Stir in the coconut milk and stir about 3 more minutes until the flavors are mixed in.

Add the following:

2 cups additional coconut milk

1 cup water

4 Tbsp soy sauce

6 Tbsp sugar

2 tsp peanut butter

1 tsp fresh lime juice

pinch of salt 

Drain water from chicken and potatoes.  (you might want to reserve it if you need to thin the sauce out a bit.)  Add chicken/potato mixture to the curry sauce.  Stir to combine and serve hot over jasmine rice.