Thai Green
Creamy, fragrant Thai green curry of chicken, spinach, edamame and green beans.
makes 16 blocks, about 45p each
- Time
- 40 min10 min prep · 30 min cook
- Makes
- 16 blocks
- Cost per blockPer block
- 45p
- Calories per blockCalories
- 99 kcal
- Spice
- 3 of 5
You’ll need
- 1 × 400ml tincoconut milk (full-fat)
- 380gchicken thigh fillets, 2cm pieces
- 150gonion
- 100gspinach
- 100gedamame (frozen)
- 100ggreen beans, 2cm lengths
- 20gfresh coriander (stalks and leaves)
- 20mllime juice
- 15mltamari (or soy sauce)
- 4 leavesdried lime leaves
- 10mlrapeseed oil
For the paste
- 30g (2 stems)lemongrass
- 15g (2)green chillies
- 12g (3 cloves)garlic
- 15gginger
- 10g (2 tsp)galangal paste
- 1 tspcoriander seed
- pinchblack pepper
or 50g ready-made Thai green curry paste (Thai Taste, Mae Ploy or own-brand)
Allergens: Soya. Check the labels on stock cubes, sauces and pastes, as brands vary.
Serve it
Jasmine or microwave basmati rice · Rice noodles with beansprouts · Cauliflower rice and Thai basil
Method
- Step 1: Make the green paste: blitz the sliced lemongrass (tough outer layer removed), chillies, garlic, ginger, galangal paste, coriander stalks, toasted coriander seed, half the onion and the pepper with 2–3 tbsp coconut milk until smooth.
- Step 2: Soften the rest of the onion in the oil for 5 minutes. Add the paste and fry for 3–4 minutes until fragrant, without browning.
- Step 3: Add the chicken and stir to coat. Pour in the rest of the coconut milk, the tamari and the lime leaves. Simmer gently for 15 minutes.
- Step 4: Add the green beans and edamame for 4 minutes, then wilt in the spinach for 1 minute.
- Step 5: Off the heat, add the lime juice and chopped coriander leaves. Remove the lime leaves.
- Step 6: Cool quickly and freeze in blocks of about 70g. Keep the veg just tender; it softens more on reheating.
Hotter: add 2 bird's eye chillies to the paste.
| kcal | protein | carbs | fat | fibre | salt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per block | 99 | 5.9g | 3g | 6.9g | 3.1g | 0.2g |
| Per 3 blocks | 297 | 17.7g | 9g | 20.7g | 9.3g | 0.6g |
Cook’s notes
- Shortcut: 50g jarred green paste (Thai Taste, Mae Ploy or Tesco) instead of making it saves time and about 70p. Jarred pastes are saltier, so taste before seasoning.
- Light coconut milk saves about 25 kcal and 2.7g fat per block, with a thinner sauce.
- Ginger can replace the galangal; lime zest can replace the lime leaves.
Serve it
Jasmine or microwave basmati rice · Rice noodles with beansprouts · Cauliflower rice and Thai basil.
Freeze, reheat and serve
- Freeze
- Cool it within two hours, portion it into 70g blocks in a silicone tray, then bag and label them. It keeps for 3 months.
- Reheat
- Microwave 3 blocks, covered, for 1 minute, stir, then heat for another 1 to 2 minutes until piping hot all the way through. Or warm them in a pan with a splash of water. Never refreeze thawed blocks.
- A portion
- 3 blocks (210g) make a dinner for one adult: about 297 kcal and 17.7g protein before rice, bread or potatoes.
Thai Green questions
Can I use chicken breast?
Yes. Add it a few minutes into the simmer and cook it until just done, as breast dries out faster than thigh.
Can I make it vegetarian?
Swap the chicken for cubed firm tofu, fried until golden first, and keep the edamame. The homemade paste has no fish or shrimp, but check the label if you use a jarred one.
Why fry the paste without letting it brown?
Gentle frying releases the aroma of the lemongrass and ginger. If it browns, the garlic turns bitter and the curry loses its fresh green colour.
Sauces that go with it
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Updated . Nutrition, costs and yields are estimates. Gluten-free assumes tamari in place of soy sauce.