English Style Madras Curry Powder

If you went to India and asked someone about finding some Madras curry powder no one would know what you were asking for.  Madras curry powder doesn’t actually exist in India.  It was created by the British in the 18th century to help them recreate the curries they had in India when they come back to England.

If you like your curries hot, this is the spice blend for you.  If you like milder curries go easy on this spice blend. You have been warned.

Ingredients

1 TBS coriander seed

2 tsp cumin seed

1/2 tsp whole cloves

1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds

1/2 tsp black peppercorns

5-7 dried red Thai chilies

1 tsp ground tumeric

Mix everything together except the ground turmeric, and grind in a spice grinder or a mortar  and pestle.  The texture should be similar to course ground black pepper.  Add the tumeric and mix well.  Store in an airtight container for 1 month. 

Red Curry Chicken and Vegetables

One of the best things about being a blogger is all the awesome people you met through the comments section of your blog and other people’s blogs. I have met so many kind, supportive people who really have an appreciation of what I am trying to do here. My followers and all the people who have commented on A Solitary Feast have given me confidence to keep doing what I am doing and built me up in my non blogging life too.

One of the not best things about blogging, is the occasional person who feels they have to tear you down for whatever reason. I don’t get these kind of comments very often and long ago decided not to feed the bullshit by approving the nasty comments. However, I feel the need to address one persistent troll who calls my food redneck  and swill among other nasty things.

Dear nasty person,

I am sorry you don’t like the recipes I post on my blog. However, I don’t post my recipes for you. I post them for me. The recipes aren’t a reflection of what you like to eat they are a reflection of what I like to eat. They are a reflection of the foods I grew up eating and some of the food traditions of the region I grew up in and still live in. If you don’t like the recipes I post you are more than welcome to stop visiting me and go visit any of the billion and one other food/recipe blogs on the internet.

You say I don’t post your nasty, petty little comments because I can’t take criticism. I take constructive criticism just fine.  I have made many adjustments to my recipes based on what people I trust have said about them.  My blog is happy, positive place. I don’t post your comments because they are cruel and mean spirited to me and the people who follow and read my blog. You have been reported to the Word Press authorities.  Sincerely,  Me.

Now with that bit of stuff over and done with those of you who actually come to A Solitary Feast because you actually like the recipes I post here can move on to the recipe for today.   One of the hardest things to do when adapting recipes for one or two is finding ingredients in sizes that don’t leave a lot of leftovers.  You can skirt the issue by making a lot of ingredients, like spice blends, sauces and things like taco seasoning yourself, in small amounts. However, some things just aren’t the same when you make them yourself so I am always on the lookout for small size ingredients.

On one of my many visits to Natural Grocers during my vacation, I found small (5.46 ounce, about 2/3 cup) cans of coconut milk.  I was so excited!!!  I have several recipes in my to try file that take coconut milk but I have never tried them.  Once I reduced the recipe, it used so little coconut milk I would end up wasting almost a whole can of coconut milk.

The first recipe I decided to try was from the back of the can of coconut milk.  It was a recipe for Red Curry Chicken and Vegetables. I have never tried making any kind of Indian food before because I can’t handle a lot of  spicy hot in my food.   I thought, wrongly, that all Indian food would be too hot for me.  I didn’t stray to far from the recipe for this one.  I looked up what vegetables would traditionally be used in a curry and used carrots and onions because that was what I had on hand .  Although I liked the recipe as it was written, the next time I make it I will play around with different  spices and vegetables.

• Difficulty: Easy
• Print

Ingredients

2/3 cup coconut milk

1 TBS Red Curry paste

1 1/2 tsp brown sugar

8 oz cooked chicken

1/2 cup assorted cut up vegetables

1 TBS fish sauce

2 TBS fresh Thai basil, optional

Bring the coconut milk to a simmer in a medium skillet over medium heat.  Stir in the curry paste and bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.  Stir in the chicken and vegetables.  Cook 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are crisp tender.  Stir in the fish sauce and basil, if using.