Vegetable & Fish Curry Stew

Today I made this stew exactly as written, with a special trip to the store for every ingredient. But it's also a great template for using up forgotten odds and ends: the wilted veg in the back of the produce drawer, the frozen chicken thighs. I always have canned coconut milk and curry paste in my pantry.

At its best, it's a stew version of "eat the rainbow." Red and orange bell peppers. Yellow zucchini, purple sweet potato, green beans and kale. Use whatever fish looks best. Or use chicken. Or use shrimp. The vegetables are suggestions — use what you already have in your fridge first. I bake the purple sweet potato separately and add it at the end, otherwise it turns the whole stew a weird pink color.

It’s great with rice, great with rice noodles, great by itself. You can continue the color theme and add black rice or black rice noodles. The contrast is fun! Or keep a simpler color profile for picky eaters.

I am partial to this curry powder, but Thai kitchen has a decent one that’s more widely available if this is a last-minute endeavor. I keep the Maesri Thai Red Curry Paste in my pantry to have on hand at all times.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons organic avocado oil

1 med-large onion, peeled and sliced

3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1/2” fresh ginger, minced ( I use frozen ginger & grate with a microplane)

1 lemongrass stalk, cut into 4 pieces

1 tablespoon red curry paste

1 red bell pepper, deseeded and sliced

1 orange bell pepper, deseeded and sliced

2 yellow zucchini, cut into circles

½ pound green beans, ends removed, cut into bite sized pieces

1 bunch lacinto kale, desteemed and torn into pieces

1 purple sweet potato

1 ½ pounds fish (some stores sell mixed fish pieces for less $)

1 can simple coconut milk (without guar gum if possible)

4-6 cups water

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 bunch each of fresh basil and cilantro, washed, leaves picked and chopped.

2 limes, for serving

short grain brown rice for serving (also good with rice noodles!)

Instructions

1) If I’m serving this stew with brown rice, I start the rice first.

2) Set the oven to 380 and bake one purple potato for one hour.

3) Heat a large pot over med-high heat. Add the oil, onions, peppers, garlic, ginger & lemongrass. Saute until the onions have browned some, about 10 minutes, stirring frequently

4) Add the red curry paste, salt, green beans, zucchini, kale and water. Simmer until vegetables are cooked through, about 30 minutes.

5) Add the fish and coconut milk. Simmer until fish is cooked through and take off the heat.

6) Cut the purple potato into cubes.

7) Taste the stew and adjust. Does it need more salt? More curry paste?

8) For serving. Serve bowls full of rice and curry. Top with cubed purple potatoes. Let people add their own lime juice and herbs, or add them yourself.