Coconut Prawn Curry

It just started snowing everywhere in Croatia, even though it's April and even though it did not snow in Rijeka for Christmas or at all during the winter. So it's a good day to make a warming recipe that will hug you with its warmth and lull you to sleep on this weird-weather day. It is super easy and quick to make, and uses store-bought frozen prawns which don't even need prior defrosting. Add some coconut milk, curry paste and rice and you've got yourself a delicious and healthy meal!

Ingredients:

250 gr prawns

2 cloves garlic

1 cm fresh ginger

2 bay leaves

2-3 kaffir lime leaves

1 tsp curry paste

1 tsp curry powder or ras el hanout

200 ml coconut milk

1 can (400 gr) chopped tomatoes

rice

limes

fresh parsley or cilantro

Instructions:

1. In a pan, heat olive oil and fry the finely chopped ginger and garlic and spices: curry paste, curry powder or ras el hanout powder, bay leaves, and kaffir lime leaves. If you're using dried kaffir lime leaves like me, you can rehydrate them for five minutes before starting to cook in warm water.

2. Add the prawns and fry them in the spiced oil for a minute while stirring.

3. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook for a few minutes. Then take your coconut milk can and add only the fatty condensed part (if you've shaken your can so both the fatty and watery part of the coconut milk have combined, just use 200 ml of the milk).

4. Cook until the mixture reduces to a thick sauce.

5. Serve immediately with cooked rice. Add fresh lime juice and chopped parsley or cilantro while serving. Bon appetit!

Chinese Inspired Braised Eggplant

A super delicious and easy side dish recipe, this eggplant dish is super aromatic thanks to a combination of warm and fragrant spices. I decided to add the radicchio to the eggplant to add another depth of flavor and texture to the dish. If you can get them, I highly recommend topping the dish with fresh broccoli and radish sprouts since they add a nice crunch and a tiny bit of heat that cuts through the warmth of the spices and creaminess of the braised eggplant.

Ingredients:

250 gr eggplant

100 gr radicchio

50 gr spring onions

2 cm fresh ginger

3 cloves garlic

1/4 tsp cinnamon, anise, cumin, cloves

3 allspice berries, peppercorns

2 tbsp tamari sauce

1 tbsp black sesame

fresh broccoli and radish sprouts

Instructions:

1. Chop the eggplant and salt it. Leave aside while you prepare the rest of the vegetables.

2. Wash the radicchio and chop into smaller pieces. Cut the spring onions, and finely chop the ginger and garlic.

3. Mix your spices in a small bowl, if using allspice berries and peppercorns (instead of pre-ground spices) use a mortar and pestle to grind them.

4. Heat your pan with some oil on medium high heat. Add the spices and fry them for around 30 seconds while stirring, then add the ginger, spring onion and garlic. Make sure your garlic doesn't burn.

5. Add the eggplant to the pan and raise the heat. After the eggplant has fried a little bit and its skin started turning glossy, add the radicchio and the sesame seeds. Keep stirring the vegetables.

6. Once the vegetables have started sticking to the pan, add two tablespoons of tamari sauce and cook for a minute longer.

7. Serve immediately, and add some fresh broccoli and radish sprouts on top. Bon appetit!

Tom Kha Gai - Coconut Chicken Soup

Tom Kha Gai is the very famous Thai coconut chicken soup. It is absolutely delicious, full of flavor and nourishing. I was lucky enough to find fresh lemongrass in a local store, along with dried Kaffir lime leaves. It is a very rare sight to find such items locally, and unfortunately, there isn't an Asian food store anywhere nearby that I could just walk into and explore. So even though I still haven't been able to find galangal to put it in this recipe, I decided to share this delicious soup as it is because everybody at home really liked it. I hope you do too!

Ingredients:

100 gr carrots

100 gr shiitake mushrooms

140 gr chicken

1 spring onion

2 cloves ginger

2 cm fresh ginger

1 lemongrass

2-3 kaffir lime leaves

1 chicken bouillon cube

1 can coconut milk - 425 ml

1 tbsp tamari sauce

1/2 tsp sambal oelek

1 L water

lemon or lime

fresh parsley or cilantro

Instructions:

1 Pour 200 ml boiling water over one chicken bouillon cube and set aside.

2. Cut the chicken and lemongrass into smaller chunks. Finely chop the ginger, garlic and spring onion.

3. In a pot, heat a bit of oil or ghee, and add the sambal oelek (chili paste), ginger, garlic, spring onion, and lemon grass. Stir occasionally.

4. After a few minutes, add the chicken and let it brown on all sides. Then add the rest of the vegetables and tamari sauce.

5. Add the chicken stock and water. Let it simmer for 15 minutes.

6. Add the coconut milk and cook on low heat for a few more minutes.

7. Serve alone or with rice noodles. Sprinkle some fresh parsley or cilantro and add fresh lime juice. Bon appetit!