🍲 Spice Fusion Chicken Curry (with galangal, lemongrass and Sichuan)

This dish combines Thai flavors (galangal, lemongrass) with Chinese spices (Sichuan pepper) for a unique experience. This recipe incorporates all the spices mentioned in the previous post. Enjoy!

⏱️ Preparation time

• Preparation: 15 minutes

• Cooking time: 25 minutes

🧑🍳 Ingredients

For the spice base (curry paste)

• 2 tbsp galangal (fresh, peeled and chopped)

• 1 stalk of lemongrass (outer layer removed, chopped)

• 2 cloves of garlic

• 1 red chili (or more, to taste)

• 1 shallot

• 1 tsp turmeric (ground, for color)

• 1 tsp ground cumin

• 1 tsp ground coriander seeds

For the curry

• 500g chicken breast (cut into bite-sized pieces) or firm tofu

• 1 tbsp coconut oil

• 400 ml coconut milk (full-fat)

• 200 ml chicken or vegetable broth

• 1 tbsp fish sauce (or soy sauce for vegans)

• 1 tsp palm sugar (or brown sugar)

• Juice of 1/2 lime

• 1/2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns (whole)

• A handful of kaffir lime leaves (optional, for extra freshness)

🍴 Instructions

1. Prepare the spice paste

• Place all the ingredients for the spice base into a blender and process with a splash of water to form a smooth paste.

2. Prepare Sichuan peppercorns (Important!)

• Roast the whole Sichuan peppercorns in a small pan without oil until fragrant (about 1-2 minutes).

• Allow the grains to cool slightly and then coarsely crush them in a mortar. Do not grind them too finely. The grains are added just before the end of cooking.

3. Frying the base

• Heat the coconut oil in a wok or pot over medium heat.

• Add the prepared spice paste and fry for 3-5 minutes while stirring until it smells intense and the oil separates.

4. Cooking the curry

• Add the chicken/tofu to the paste and fry briefly until lightly browned.

• Add coconut milk and broth. Add kaffir lime leaves (if using).

• Bring the curry to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes until the chicken is cooked (or 5 minutes if using tofu).

5. Season to taste and serve

• Season with fish sauce/soy sauce and palm sugar until the curry is balanced.

• Just before serving, stir in the lime juice and the crushed Sichuan peppercorns .

• Serve immediately with jasmine rice and fresh coriander.