Recipe of the Week: Thai Beef Curry & Coconut Rice

This recipe was inspired by my friend Evelyn deGallery. At a recent talk I did for my Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) group, I asked the audience to bring one recipe to share with the other mamas. Evelyn says this recipe is her kids' favorite dinner. I tweaked the recipe a little bit to simplify it. This dish is great for employing some of those fresh summer vegetables like peppers, fresh basil and onions.

If you don't have time for homemade curry sauce, you might try the Trader Joe's brand of red curry or yellow curry sauce. Both are mouth-wateringly good. If you are not using brown rice, use only two cups of liquid to cook every one cup of rice.



Thai Beef Curry

Ingredients:
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-1 onion, sliced
-1 clove garlic, minced
-1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
-2 steaks, thinly sliced
-2 organic red or yellow peppers, cut into 1-inch strips
-8-10 fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces

Sauce:
-2 large cloves garlic, minced
-1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
-2 tablespoons fish sauce (available at Whole Foods or in the Asian section of grocery stores or R-N Asian market)
-1-2 teaspoon red curry paste (available at Whole Foods or in the Asian section of grocery stores or R-N Asian market)
-1/2 teaspoon cumin
-1 tablespoon honey
-1 cups organic coconut milk

Directions:
1. Heat olive oil on medium-high heat in a skillet. Add onions, ginger and garlic and saute for 3-4 minutes.
2. Add sliced steak and brown. Meanwhile, mix ingredients for sauce in a bowl.
3. When steaks are browned, add cut red peppers and torn basil leaves. Saute peppers with meat for 2-3 minutes.
4. Pour sauce mixture on top of beef and vegetables. Allow to simmer until sauce thickens slightly about 5-7 minutes.

Coconut Rice

Ingredients:
-2 cups brown jasmine rice
-2 1/4 cups water
-2 cups coconut milk (usually 1 can)
-5 fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced
*rice cooker

1. Combine rice, water and coconut milk in rice cooker.
2. Cook in rice cooker (or on stovetop) as you normally would. Takes approximately 15 minutes.