Serves 4
Preparation time 15 minutes, plus soaking
Cooking time 20 minutes
125 g (4 oz) broccoli forets
125 g (4 oz) French beans, cut into 2.5 cm (1 inch) lengths
1 red pepper, cored, deseeded and sliced
125 g (4 oz) courgettes, thinly sliced
Coconut sauce
25 g (1 oz) tamarind pulp
150 ml (¼ pint) boiling water
400 ml (14 fl oz) can coconut milk
2 teaspoons Thai green curry paste
1 teaspoon grated fresh root Ginger
1 onion, cut into small cubes
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
salt
Make the coconut sauce. Put the tamarind in a bowl. Pour over the measurement water and leave to soak for 30 minutes. Mash the tamarind in the water, then push through a sieve set over another bowl, squashing the tamarind so that you get as much of the pulp as possible; discard the stringy bits and any seeds.
Take 2 tablespoons of the cream from the top of the coconut milk and pour it into a wok or large frying pan. Add the curry paste, ginger, onion and turmeric, and cook over a gentle heat, stirring, for 2–3 minutes. Stir in the rest of the coconut milk and the tamarind water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and add a pinch of salt.
Add the broccoli to the coconut sauce and cook for 5 minutes, then add the green beans and red pepper. Cook, stirring, for another 5 minutes. Finally, stir in the courgettes and cook gently for 1–2 minutes until the courgette is just tender. Serve immediately with some crispy prawn crackers.
For chicken & green beans in coconut sauce, soak the tamarind and make the coconut sauce as above. Add 500 g (1 lb) diced boneless, skinless chicken breast to the wok or frying pan. Simmer for 5 minutes, then add the sliced French beans, omitting the red pepper and courgettes. Simmer gently for another 5 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Serve with noodles.