The ideal Thai dish will have a harmonious balance of sweet, salty, spicy, and sour. That’s why it’s so satisfying to eat. And I am guessing you love happy tastebuds as well since you are looking at this recipe.

I also love cooking Thai dishes because usually it’s quick and fairly easy. The other plus is that you can do almost all the prep ahead of time so when it’s time to make dinner, it will take just a few minutes. I have some suggestions for you at the end of the recipe under the Do Ahead section.

I gave this recipe a rating of easy because really – it is pretty easy to make. But then I added intermediate because some of the ingredients may require some searching at the grocery store or going to a specialty store.

Thank you to my friends – Alex for cooking with me, and Goody for video taping.

Serves 4          Difficulty Level: easy to intermediate

• 3-4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pound sirloin steak, cut into thin, bite-sized strips
• ½ pound Japanese eggplants, about 2, sliced on the bias
• 1-2 tablespoons of green curry paste (recipe follows, or use store-bought)
• 2 ½ cups coconut milk
• 4 kaffir lime leaves, chopped
• 1-2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon palm sugar (or granulated sugar)
• A handful of Thai basil leaves
• 2 Thai chilies, sliced thinly for garnish

Heat some oil in a large sauté pan or wok. Add the sliced beef and sauté, stirring frequently, until the beef is almost cooked, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside for later.

Next, add more oil if necessary (Enough to cover the whole surface of the pan.) Sauté the sliced eggplants until brown on both sides, stirring frequently. Remove from pan and add to the cooked beef.

Heat about 2 tablespoons oil in the same pan. Add 1 tablespoon green curry paste and fry until fragrant. Stir in half of the coconut milk and stir. Cook for about 5-6 minutes, until an oily sheen appears.

Add the kaffir lime leaves, fish sauce, and sugar. Stir in the remaining coconut milk. Bring back to a simmer and add the sautéed eggplants and beef and heat through. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Add the Thai basil leaves just before serving. Garnish with Thai chilies. Serve warm with rice.

Green Curry Paste

• 15 Thai chilies
• 2 lemongrass stalks, chopped
• 3 shallots, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon chopped galangal
• 4 kaffir lime leaves, chopped
• ½ teaspoon lime zest
• 1 teaspoon chopped cilantro root (or 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves)
• 6 black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon shrimp paste (optional)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Combine all the ingredients together thoroughly in a mortar and pestle or in a food processor until smooth. Add the oil, a little at a time, and blend well between each addition. Makes about 1 cup.

Leftover curry paste can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Variations:

• To make it vegetarian or vegan, you can omit the fish paste in the curry paste and use soy sauce instead of fish sauce.
• Use other vegetables like bell peppers, carrots, bok choy, broccoli, zucchini, or cauliflower.
• Make it lighter, by using light coconut cream
• Serve with white rice, brown rice, noodles, quinoa, faro, or other grains

Do Ahead:

• Make the curry coconut sauce up to 5 days ahead. Sauté the beef and eggplants when ready to eat and combine with the sauce.
• Mise en place (A method of preparing and organizing ingredients before you start cooking.) all the ingredients, except the eggplant up to 3 days in advance. Eggplant can be sliced one day ahead.