Finance Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has implemented the New Economic Policy, a collection of reforms aimed at opening trade and foreign investment in India, further melding the Indian economy with the global one. A rush of wealth and opportunity has poured into the country and - for better or worse - the rest of the planet has followed behind.
A young college student has had a hunger for the world and all the diverse foods it offered. For him, globalisation has brought those foods to his plate and the radical growth that comes during any adolescence is increased tenfold.
Amidst the parties and lectures and a pastime of fixing audio equipment for pocket change, he has enjoyed cooking and being cooked for the most. The surge of foreign national students has meant the surge of foreign cuisine and he has made great efforts to keep his door and kitchen open. After nearly three decades, one recipe in particular - one still cooked in his kitchen – has epitomised this whirlwind era:
Utsav’s Global Thai Red Curry - Serves 4
A highly versatile recipe, Utsav encourages you to include a large number of your favourite vegetables to sauté in this curry. He uses a large amount of Shitake mushrooms, green and red bell peppers, green peas, beans, and carrots, all chopped into roughly 1-inch pieces.
Paste Ingredients:
- 8 dry red spur chiles (can be replaced with Kashmiri red chiles)
- 3 teaspoons white peppercorns
- ½ teaspoon coriander seed powder
- 15 garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon chopped lemongrass
- 1 tablespoon chopped galangal (can be replaced with ginger)
- ½ of lime's peel, but without any white flesh
- 2-3 shallots
Other Ingredients
- Vegetables of your choice
- Two Tins of Da Morgada’s Portuguese Mackerel in Piri Piri Sauce.
- 250ml Coconut Milk
- 1 tsp of Jaggery
- 2 tsp of Tamarind Paste
- 2-3 Fresh Lemon Leaves
- 1 tsp of Felea Goods Dried Rosemary
- Rice
The Process:
- Put all the paste ingredients in a blender and make a fine paste.
- Chop the vegetables.
- Heat a wok with 2 tablespoons of oil.
- When the oil is hot put all the vegetables into the wok and sauté it for 2-3 minutes.
- Put all the Thai red curry paste into it and sauté it further for about 5 more minutes on medium heat.
- Pour 250 ml of coconut milk and 100 ml of water into the wok.
- Add 1 teaspoon of jaggery (or ½ teaspoon of sugar), 2 teaspoons of tamarind paste and salt to taste
- Let the whole thing boil on medium heat for about 5 minutes so that the curry becomes a little thicker
- At this point add Da Morgada’s Portuguese Mackerel in Piri Piri Sauce into the wok and let it boil for about 1 minute.
- Crush and add, 2-3 finger-crushed fresh lemon leaves and Felea Goods Dried Greek Rosemary. Close the lid for 5 minutes so that the fragrance from the lemon leaves and rosemary marinates with the curry.
- Serve it hot with rice.
