Prawn and Chickpea Curry

Andy | Dinner | Thai

Prep time: 5 minutes Cook time: 15 minutes Servings: 1

Making dinner for one? This is my go to curry when I'm only cooking for myself and don't want to use too many ingredients or too much mess. Most of the ingredients I will already have in the pantry or fridge and anything I'm missing I can easily pick up from the grocer on the way home.

This is a Thai style curry which has a coconut milk base with a red curry paste. Once we build the curry we'll add chickpeas, prawns, baby spinach and lime juice to finish.

Ingredient Notes

Red curry paste: This is a blend of red chills, lemongrass, galangal and a mix of spices. It's very aromatic and is what gives this curry so much flavour. You'll be able to pick it up in a grocer or Asian supermarket.

Demerara sugar: It's a type of minimally processed, raw cane sugar. For this recipe the best alternative would be any raw sugar, otherwise palm sugar or standard white sugar work well. We don’t add sugar here for the curry to be sweet; you want to add just enough so that the sugar balances the acid and spice.

Equipment

Chopping board
Chef’s knife
Medium saucier or medium saucepan
Wooden spatula
Sieve or colander
Measuring cup

Ingredients

1 shallot
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tbsp neutral flavoured oil (ie. peanut oil)
2 tbsp Maesri red curry paste
1 tin (400ml) coconut milk
1 tin (240g drained) chickpeas
12 frozen prawns, defrosted
1 tsp demerara sugar
1 lime, juice
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 handful (20g) baby spinach
sea salt to taste

Directions

Peel and finely slice the shallot. Crush and roughly chop the garlic.
Preheat a medium saucier over medium heat with the oil. Add the shallot and garlic with a ¼ tsp salt, sauté for 1 minute.
Add the curry paste and stir for a further 1 minute. Turn the heat up high and add ½ cup of the coconut milk to the saucier, continue stirring for 4-5 minutes. When you notice the fat from the coconut milk beginning to crack (or split), it’s ready.
Add the drained chickpeas, prawns, remaining coconut milk, and sugar. Bring to a simmer on medium heat for 4 minutes.
Once the prawns are fully cooked, add in the lime juice and fish sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Turn the heat off and fold the baby spinach through the sauce. Serve and enjoy!

Recipe notes

Chef's Tips

Cook out the curry paste

Cooking out the red curry paste removes the raw, harsh flavors and toasts the spices. If you don’t cook out the curry paste first, the curry won’t be as aromatic and could taste bitter and too sharp.

Cook out the coconut milk until it cracks

Cracking, or splitting the coconut milk helps to release oils, which unlocks fat soluble flavours in the curry paste. It’s a traditional Thai technique that, when done correctly, maximizes the flavour of the curry and gives the sauce a glossy layer of fragrant oil. To get the best results, don’t shake the tin of coconut milk. Use the layer of cream which sometimes separates on top for cracking.

Serving suggestions

I enjoy this recipe as a weeknight meal, on its own because it’s easy. If you want to bulk it out, you can serve the curry with fluffy steamed jasmine rice to help absorb some of that sauce, topped with fresh herbs like coriander and mint or crushed, toasted peanuts.

Storage

Allow the curry to cool at room temperature for half an hour, before placing it into a container fitted with a lid and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. Make sure the curry comes to a complete boil for food safety reasons when you reheat it.

FAQs

What can I use instead of prawns? If you don’t have prawns lying around in the freezer, you can swap the prawns for defrosted, frozen fish, chicken breast or firm tofu. Regardless of what you decide to use, slice them into similar bite-sized chunks so they cook evenly.

I don't have limes? You can use lemons or a little bit of white vinegar instead.

What is neutral flavoured oil? Neutral flavoured oil is any oil that has a high smoke point (meaning it’s good to use at high temperatures) and has very little flavour or aroma. My go to is peanut oil, but vegetable oil, grapeseed oil, canola oil or sunflower oil all work well.

If I don't have fish sauce, what can I use? Use a light soy sauce to bring the umami flavour that fish sauce offers, or adjust the seasoning with a pinch of salt.