This is not your regular Thai Green Curry! It’s actually a fusion of different Thai dishes and combines the flavour and richness of a traditional Thai Green Curry with the crispy texture of a Nam Khao Salad.
This Thai Green Curry recipe includes a crispy rice that is traditionally found in the Nam Khao salad with veggies and prawns to make an incredibly flavourful, beautiful and tasty dish!
How To Make and Serve This Thai Green Curry Recipe
This Thai Green Curry has a few components including the Thai Green Curry, the Crispy Rice, the Veggie and the Toppings. It should be made in the following order:
1. Prepare the Thai Green Curry and allow it to simmer before prepping the other ingredients. The longer it simmers, the more flavourful it gets! Thai Green Curry pastes can vary greatly so add more or less fish sauce and chilli peppers/siracha based on the paste and your personal taste
2. Combine the ingredients required for the crispy rice, and it is very important to use day old or leftover rice. If you are using fresh rice, it will need to be dried for a few hours because the moisture will not allow it to fry up.
3. The prawns (or jumbo shrimp), bok choy and spinach will cook very quickly so it can be cooked at the end.
4. All the toppings are optional, but I would recommend the red pepper and cilantro especially.
Thai Green Curry Recipe Tips
The most important part of ANY Thai Green Curry is to understand that it usually starts with a Thai Green Curry paste and they can vary GREATLY between brands in terms of flavour and spice. They are NOT all created equally. I have actually tried a few brands to get this right for this recipe because I wanted strong notes of lemongrass and lime, and NOT spice.
If you are new to curry, I would recommend using Maejin Green Curry Paste. I buy it in the small jar from T&T but it is also available on Amazon. Note that this paste is designed to be mild and have the spice added later.
I’ve read a lot of criticism on this because it is not naturally spicy and therefore not “authentic.” As someone who has spent weeks in Thailand (including staying in a Buddhist Monastery), I disagree with the elitism in food if you don’t like spice that it’s not “authentic”. I actually took a cooking class in Thailand and made my own green curry paste from scratch and my teacher said I was allowed to add as much spice as I like. I find the people who come up with the authenticity rules are usually not from Thailand because Thai people are some of the nicest, least judgemental and chill people.
I usually love AroyD products and have been using their green curry paste for years, but I do not recommend using their green curry paste for this recipe if you are trying to mimic the Cactus Club. It is VERY spicy and can easily be overpowering if you are not used to heat. I think this is a great brand if you cook curries a lot and like spice (because you only use it a little at a time!). If you are new to Thai Curries I recommend using a mild and flavourful curry paste and then adding as much spice as you want later on. Personally, I think especially if you are new to Thai curries, it is a spice level you can build up to and switch brands if you feel like it’s too mild.
I have both the AroyD and Maejin and use both for when I’m trying to achieve something different. Cooking is all about YOUR tastes so if you want to build up the spice, no judgement 🙂
With Thai Curry Paste, it’s important to saute the paste separately from the aromatics to help release the flavours before adding in the coconut milk, chicken stock, etc. It only takes a few minutes and is so worth it!
For the Crispy Rice, it is VERY important to use leftover rice. If you do not have it, the rice needs to be dried out on a flat dish for a few hours because if it is moist, it will not crisp up properly.
OPTIONAL: As a tip from an ex-Cactus Club employee add in 1/4 up of thawed frozen (or fresh) spinach and use an immersion blender to blend it in and make it extra green).
The Thai Green Curry Recipe
Ingredients
Makes 2 Servings Curry 2 Stalks Lemon Grass 2 Shallots 3 Slices of Gangal or Ginger 3 Garlic Cloves 1-4 Tbsp of Green Curry Paste (depending on how spicy it is) 1 can of Coconut Milk 3 Stems of Thai Basil 1/2 tsp Lime zest 1 Tbsp Lime juice 2 Cups of Chicken Stock OR 2 Cups of Water and 3 Tbsp of Chicken Bouillion ( I prefer Bouillion) 1 Tsp of Fish Sauce Optional to bring up spice: 2 Thai Chilli Peppers (Seedless and Sliced), Garlic Chilli Sauce or Siracha and 1/4 Cup of thawed spinach (to blend into the curry to make it more green) Crispy Rice 1/2 Cup of Leftover Rice 1 Tsp Garlic Chilli Sauce 1 Tsp Curry Powder 1 Tbsp Rice Flour 1/4 Cup of Neutral Oil Base + Toppings 1 Cup of Rice 2 Cups of Bok Choy 3 Cups of Spinach 6 Jumbo Shrimps or Prawns 1 Tbsp of Sesame Oil Garnishes Lime Leaf/Thai Basil Red Pepper Bean Sprouts Lime Chilli OilInstructions
- In a pan, sauté 2 stalks of lemon grass, 2 shallots, 3 slices of ginger, and 3 garlic cloves.
- Remove the aromatics and add 2-4 Tbsp of green curry paste (depending on desired spiciness and flavour) to the pan. I used the Maejin Thai Green Curry Paste and used 4 Tbsps, but it will vary greatly on the type you use. Saute for about 1 minute, just to release the flavours.
- Add back in the aromatics, 1 can of coconut milk, Thai basil, Lime Zest, Lime Juice, and Chicken Stock. Taste the curry and add in Fish Sauce and desired level of spice. I used 2 Thai Chilli Peppers, but you can also use siracha or garlic chilli sauce as desired. Let the curry simmer for at least 15 minutes while preparing the other ingredients stirring occasionally. OPTIONAL: As a tip from an ex-Cactus Club employee add in 1/4 up of thawed frozen (or fresh) spinach and use an immersion blender to blend it in and make it extra green).
- In a small dish, separate the leftover rice into individual grains as much as possible. If you do not have leftover rice, cook rice and allow it to dry for a couple of hours. Mix in garlic chilli sauce and curry powder until rice turns an orangey-red. Once it’s combined, add rice flour and evenly coat.
- In a pan, heat up the neutral oil to medium high and add a few grains of rice to ensure oil is hot enough. If bubbles form around the rice grains, that’s when the oil is ready. Fry the rice for 2-3 minutes or until rice turns crispy. Remove immediately from pan and drain out the oil.
- In another pan, sauté prawns or jumbo shrimp with minced garlic and sesame oil. Remove from pan and saute the bok choy and spinach, adding in sesame oil as required.
- To assemble, add the rice to the bottom of the bowl and crispy rice on top. Add in bok choy, spinach, prawns, and top with lime leaves, Thai basil leaves, red pepper, bean sprouts, and a lime wedge.
- Remove the shallots, gangal, and lemongrass by straining the curry and pour it the bowl. Drizzle on chilli oil and enjoy!
