You know you curry me life, you curry me thinking...

Thanks, Katchafire, awesome song.  I know the original didn't actually mention curry but, to be honest, you'll be hard-pressed to find one that does.  Sometimes a little poetic licence is needed, I'm sure those kings of dub won't mind. 

As you've no doubt noticed, it's spring.  Curry isn't really a food that jumps to mind when you think of sun, al fresco dining and the beach (I'm a year-round beacher, none of this 'summer-only' puha), but perhaps we need to adjust our thinking.  I can definitely understand why curries are moreso associated with winter, and maybe autumn - it's cold, they're hot; it's cold, they're warming; you want thick, comforting food with plenty of carbs, they're thick, comforting and come with rice and/or breads. 

However, it's spring and summer vege gardens are being put in around the country (well, around the warmer parts anyway - might be another month or so for the deep south).  Vege gardens = fresh herbs.  Coriander, thyme, chives, parsley.  Nothing makes me curry-hungry more than the smell of fresh coriander.  So it was that last night, after returning home from our bi-weekly shop, that we whipped up a thai yellow curry, spurred on by the coriander in the garden, and the smell of the one sitting on the kitchen sill. 

Break out of the seasonal chains peeps - curry it up year round.  And watch this space for a tasty looking greek stew a la Nigella (it uses a whole bottle of white wine, so surely we can't go wrong) - winter's food is spreading its wings! 

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

2cm ginger, diced

1 capsicum, sliced

handful mushrooms, chopped

few florets broccoli

dash sweet chilli sauce

1 tbsp (or so) curry paste

1 tin (or so) coconut milk

sesame oil

2 chicken thighs, chopped

handful nuts, seeds

rice

1. Brown chicken lightly in a little oil (olive, rice bran, whatever).  Remove from pan and set aside. 
2. Fry onion, garlic and ginger in sesame oil, until slightly soft.  Stir in curry paste, chilli sauce and coconut cream/milk.  Let it reduce a little, over a medium-low heat. 
3. Add in all other ingredients and leave to simmer until you're ready to eat - the nuts give it so much texture and a wonderful flavour.  We've been using a mixture of brasil nuts and almonds, crushed up a bit.  So good - wouldn't go back to a nutless curry. 
4. Get rice on - I cook it as per the link above (click on 'rice').  I usually use a stock cube though, rather than salt, and always throw in some cumin seeds. 
5. Serve when all's ready and enjoy!  This makes enough for 4 people, maybe 5 if you have roti or naan too. 

PS: The picture of the dogs isn't completely random, they were apparantly enjoying the wonderful aroma that is coriander too.