Coconut Curry

Ugh, being sick when you are far away from home is no fun. Starting yesterday, I got super tired, head and body aches, cough, the whole nine yards. Is it H1N1? (No it's not really "swine flu" and I am sick of the panic it induces) Hopefully not, but a possibility. But I have spent two days lying in bed, drinking lots of water and watching movies. I haven't really been coherent enough to get work done, so if this post is a bit strange, blame the fever.

But before I got sick, I did something I new. Usually when I cook, I have at least read a recipe, and usually just tweak it based on my tastes and what I have on hand. I am rarely confident enough to just "wing it." But I did. I knew I wanted to use coconut milk, and I went from there. The results: Coconut Curry Tofu. I didn't write anything down, or really measure, so the recipe is approximate.


Coconut Curry Tofu
Brown rice, cooked

Tofu, whatever you decide is one serving (I used silken firm)
Olive oil

1 carrot, sliced
1/2 a small onion, chopped (I had a red on hand)
1 tomato, chopped (remove the seeds first)
1 hot pepper, diced small (I left half the seeds in, but do so with caution!)
Ginger root, finely diced
Spices: curry powder, salt, black pepper,
Coconut milk (I used about 2/3 of a can)

1. Start the brown rice cooking first. Or use white. Whatever. I just like the extra protein
2. Slice your tofu, and press it while you prep the other ingredients, just to avoid excess moisture.
3. Get all your veggies chopped
4. Boil the carrots until just a little tender. You could skip this, if you like more of a crunch
5. Saute the onion and ginger in a bit of water or oil in a small sauce pot.
6. Add coconut milk and spices to the pot. Cook until for 10 minutes? It will thicken slightly
7. While this is going, chop tofu into bite sized pieces and saute in olive oil.
8. Add carrots and tomatoes to sauce pot.

Here is what my stove looked like at this point:


Tofu:


Sauce and Curry:
To finish, put your rice in a bowl, ladle on some of the veggies and coconut milk, then top with tofu!

Well, for a recipe-less and plan-less foray into the kitchen, I think I ended up with a tasty dinner!


Now back to sleep and recovery before I head off to London on Thursday! Then comes frantic paper-writing, then MEGAN IS VISITING! Slightly more frantic writing/studying, parties, then HOME!

Oh, and travel tour pictures are now posted on Picasa: http://picasaweb.google.com/MalleryO