Thai Peanut Curry & Brown Rice Bear
I would have to say that Thai food is one of my very favourites and my little family enjoys it as well. I’m not sure if it’s just their personalities or if it’s because I ate a lot of spicy foods when pregnant and nursing that my kids like spicy, but they REALLY do. Even at two and three years old they were loving it. This dish has a little bit of spice but not so much that you can’t enjoy the wonderful & colourful flavours. If you really like spice you could add more curry but I would try it as is first. Obviously it’s not a recipe for those with peanut allergies but a great & hardy meal to satisfy any Thai food cravings. If you’ve never had curry before, this would be a great way to enjoy it’s flavour for the very first time. You could also swap other veggies such as sweet potato for squash and perhaps add some mushrooms, depending on what you have on hand and you can use fresh or frozen veggies but frozen veggies will cook a little faster.
- 1 Block Extra Firm Organic Tofu (cut into half inch cubes) or Chicken
- 1 Cup Green Beans (fresh or frozen, cut into 1 inch pieces)
- 1 Cup Peppers (I usually use red & green sliced & cut into 1-2 inch pieces)
- 1 Cup Acorn or Butternut Squash (cut into 1 inch chunks)
- 1 Medium Yellow onion (chopped)
- 1 TB coconut oil (optional)
- 1 Small Can Water Chestnuts (sliced)
- ½ Cup Cashews (roughly chopped)
- 1 Handful of Raisins or Currants
- Chopped Cilantro (for garnish)
- Unsweetened Coconut (for garnish, toasted optional)
- Lime wedges (for garnish)
- Sauce:
- 1 Cup Coconut Milk (if light kind, use 1,1/2 cups coconut milk & ½ cup broth)
- 1 Cup Chicken or Vegetable Broth
- ⅓ Cup Peanut Butter (Natural & Not Roasted)
- 1 TB Red Curry Paste
- 5 Medjool dates (pitted)
- 2 TB Lime Juice & Lime wedges to garnish
- 1 TB Corn starch or Arrow root powder (optional)
- 1 tsp Fish Sauce (optional)
- Cook tofu or chicken in a pan with either coconut oil or using a water saute method which is simply adding a table spoon of water to the pan as needed to keep the tofu from burning. Set aside when done.
- In a separate pan or after you have removed the tofu/chicken, water sauté the green beans, peppers, squash and onion. Place a lid on top for about 3 to 4 minutes until the squash is slightly tender.
- Mean while combine all the sauce ingredients except for the cashews, raisins, water chestnuts & cilantro in a blender and blend until smooth.
- When vegetables are tender but not too soft, add the cashews, raisins, water chestnuts & tofu. Cook for one more minute.
- Add the sauce to the vegetable mixture and stir to combine.
- Cook until thickened. (If using arrowroot powder you don't want to bring to a boil as it will loose it's thickening power. Once thickened remove from heat). It should only be slightly thick & still somewhat runny.
- Serve with brown rice & top with coconut, chopped cilantro & lime wedges for garnish.
