CHICKEN IN RED CURRY WITH RICE BALLS

Chicken in red curry with rice balls is another great Thai recipe that I will keep. It’s fairly easy to make and delicious, especially served with glutinous/sticky rice balls. The fragrant jasmine rice reign supreme in Southeast Asia and many parts of Thailand too, however, in northern part of Thailand, glutinous rice is a grain of choice.

Glutinous rice is my favorite too. No utensils required when you serve this dish. When you roll the sticky rice into little balls and dip it into the curry sauces, it’s really make eating rice much more fun. Hmmm…..my mouth is watering just thinking about it. Thank you Martin Yan, for another great recipe from Martin Yan’s Asian Favorite.

CHICKEN IN RED CURRY WITH RICE BALLS (4 servings)

Rice Balls
1/2 cup glutinous rice (soak for at least 8 hours or overnight) + 1/2 cup water
1/2 cup long-grain rice + 1 cup water

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
3 Tbsp Thai red curry paste – readily available in Asian store
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken, thinly sliced
1/4 cup water
1 cup roll-cut carrots, blanched
1 cup sliced bamboo shoots
2 Tbsp fish sauce
2 tsp palm sugar or brown sugar
3 fresh Thai chili, each cut lengthwise into 4 pieces
4 kaffir lime leaves, julienned
1/2 cup Thai or sweet basil leaves
Thai or sweet basil leaves, thinly sliced for garnish

COOKING THE RICE:

1. Wash and drain the glutinous rice. Soak in water enough to cover the rice for at least 8 hours or overnight. The next day (if soaking overnight), drain the water. In a small-sized pot, combine the rice and water. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and cook for 40 minutes or until the rice is fluffy and sticky

2. While the glutinous rice is cooking, wash and drain the long-grain rice in small-sized pot. In a small-sized pot, combine the rice and water. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and cook for about 15-20 minutes or until the rice is fluffy

COOKING METHOD:

1. In a bowl, combine long grain and glutinous rice. To make each rice ball, wet hands with water and scoop up about 2 Tbsp of the rice mixture, and mold into and oval shape. Place on a serving plate; cover with a damp towel and set aside

2. Place a wok over high heat until hot. Add oil, swirling to coat sides. Add curry paste and stir-fry until fragrant, about 1 minute

3. Add chicken and stir fry until chicken is no longer pink, 2 to 3 minutes. Add water, carrots, bamboo shoots, fish sauce, palm sugar, chilis, and lime leaves. Decrease heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Add basil leaves and cook for 1 minute

4. Serve curry with rice balls and garnish with thinly sliced basil leaves