Choo Chee Curry

Choo Chee Curry (Thai Red Curry with Prawns)

Choo chee is a rich, dry-style Thai red curry where coconut cream is cooked down with red curry paste until it clings to the seafood. This version uses prawns, finished with fine slivers of kaffir lime leaf.

Prep

20 min

Cook

25 min

Total

45 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •600 g (1 lb 5 oz) raw prawns (shrimp), shell-on, large, or use firm white fish fillets such as sea bass or snapper
• •400 ml (1⅔ cups) coconut cream, full-fat, from a can
• •3 tbsp red curry paste, store-bought or homemade, Mae Ploy or Maesri brand works well
• •1 tbsp fish sauce, plus more to taste
• •1 tbsp palm sugar, or light brown sugar
• •6 leaves kaffir lime leaves, 4 finely shredded for cooking, 2 cut into very thin slivers for garnish
• •1 tbsp vegetable oil, or coconut oil
• •1 whole red chili, sliced into thin diagonal strips, seeds removed, for garnish
• •1 tbsp lime juice, freshly squeezed, to finish

Steps

1. 1 Peel and devein the prawns, leaving the tail segment on if you like. Pat dry and set aside. Remove the central vein from the kaffir lime leaves and shred 4 leaves finely; cut the remaining 2 into hair-thin slivers and keep separate for garnish.
2. 2 Scoop about 100 ml (scant ½ cup) of the thick coconut cream from the top of the can into a wok or wide pan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle simmer, stirring, until the cream splits and the oil begins to separate, about 3–4 minutes.
3. 3 Add the red curry paste and stir-fry in the coconut cream for 2 minutes until fragrant and the oil separates again.
4. 4 Pour in the remaining coconut cream and stir to combine. Add the shredded lime leaves, fish sauce and palm sugar. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 8–10 minutes until the sauce thickens and reduces so it will coat the back of a spoon - this is the key to a proper dry-style choo chee.
5. 5 Add the prawns and simmer for 3–4 minutes, turning once, until the prawns are just cooked through: they should be opaque and pink all the way through, with an internal temperature of at least 70°C (160°F). If using fish fillets, simmer 5–6 minutes until the flesh flakes easily and reaches 63°C (145°F).
6. 6 Taste and adjust with a little more fish sauce or palm sugar if needed, then stir in the lime juice.
7. 7 Transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with the fine slivers of kaffir lime leaf and the sliced red chili. Serve immediately with steamed jasmine rice.