If you ever travel to India and farther eastward and down, there is a culinary tradition that is hard to miss. It revolves around one of the most potent food herbs on the planet – turmeric – and is the epitome of Hippocrates’ famous statement “let food be thy medicine.”
I’m talking about the ancient art of curry.
This time-honored dish has actually formed its own category of food in many parts of the world, and you will find that the flavors and combinations differ deliciously from India to Thailand to Malaysia. But the core ingredients are always the same, and the end result packs a tasty wallop of wellness.
Curry is a mouth-watering marvel of early medicine. Somehow, the inhabitants of South and Far East Asia knew that turmeric’s mighty anti-inflammatory compound curcumin could only be fully activated by heating the herb in a fat and combining it with the compound piperine (found in pepper).
When you throw in some nutritious vegetables and ladle it over a well-sourced basmati rice… magic happens.
Below, I’ve shared an herb-packed green curry recipe that will thrill your taste buds, comfort your mind and nourish your body.
IMPORTANT: there are MANY different ways to make a curry. The recipe below is a hybrid creation that a chef friend shared with me – it’s become a favorite in our house. The dish combines elements of India, Thailand and Malaysia – and has some added herbs for extra flavor and health benefits.
Herb-Packed Green Curry
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons Coconut Oil
1 can (14 oz) Coconut Milk
½ teaspoon Cumin Seed
½ teaspoon Black Pepper
2 cloves Garlic – minced
2 tablespoons Fresh Ginger – minced
1 teaspoon Garam Masala (you can find this online or in a health food store)
2 tablespoons Thai Green Chili Paste (you can find this in most grocery stores)
2 teaspoons Fresh Turmeric – finely chopped
1 Yellow Onion – chopped
2 Red Peppers – sliced
1 Large Eggplant – sliced into ½ inch cubes
2 cups Spinach – chopped
3 Medium Carrots – sliced
½ cup Basil – fresh leaves
Soy Sauce or Sea Salt
Water
Preparation:
- In a large skillet or pan, add coconut oil and cumin seeds. Cook on medium heat until the seeds are lightly toasted.
- Add garlic and ginger. Sauté for 5 minutes or until garlic is lightly browned.
- Add the onion and sauté until translucent.
- Add the fresh turmeric, garam masala and salt. Cook for 5 minutes
- Add all vegetables (except for spinach) and cook for 3 minutes.
- Add the Thai green chili paste, coconut milk, black pepper and enough water to barely cover the vegetables. Place a lid on the pan and simmer for 15 minutes – or until veggies are tender.
- Add spinach and, depending on how thick you’d like the sauce , add a touch more water to reach desired consistency. Cook for 2 more minutes.
- Add Soy Sauce or Sea Salt to taste.
- Serve over basmati rice (quinoa is a nutritious alternative, if you’d prefer.)
- Top each bowl with fresh basil leaves.
- Enjoy!
While you are making the above recipe, it’s fun to meditate on the fact that you are carrying forward one of the most medicinal culinary traditions the world has ever known!
Stay curious,
Nick Polizzi
Host of Healing Kitchen: Let Food Be Thy Medicine
& Founder of The Sacred Science
18 Responses
For the sake of Mother Earth and the health of our bodies, please use only organic, gmo, pesticide and herbicide free, ingredients. Thank you, Nick, for posting your tasty recipes!
This is literally exactly what we needed today to heal my daughter! Thank you!
Very practical and healthy recipes for all in my small yard I have a few “good weeds “which am using in my kitchen
so happy that on the other side of our world, people like Nick work on the path of real health and real respect for what our Earth offers. Thanks for sharing Nick, be blessed.
The ingredients list has yellow onion but in the directions it says red onion. Which type of onion is preferred for this recipe?
Note that many commercially available Thai green and red curry pastes contain fish and/or shellfish.
There is a good recipe in “East meets Vegan” by Sasha Gill for curry pastes without animal products.
Hey Nick. One comment on the recipe. I’m not a chef, but I have taken cooking classes in Thailand a few timesb. If you were to replace the eggplant in your recipe with potato or sweet potato, you would have my favorite Thai curry, called Massaman curry.. I love the combo of the Indian curry powder with the Thai curry paste. Thanks.
In step 3, you say to add the red onion, but in the list of ingredients you have yellow onion. Which do you prefer to use?
Thank you Nick for sending me this Green Curry recipe…..
sounds yummy…. I will cook it up soon.
So kind of you.
Blessings upon you and your Family.
Thank you for all your articles. I appreciate. Many blessings to e.
Uh Oh!!! You forgot to include “BLACK PEPPER”
Did you send this? A 10 essential oil blend for sinuses? I lost it.
I love the recipe I will try.
Thanks for sharing.
Love these recipes! Thanks! BUT WHY no links to my computer or email? I can’t use a recipe unless I can download and print it.
I made this dish, wow. We loved it! Thx.
I live in Nairobi, Kenya. I made this dish 2 weeks ago and the whole family loved it. Thanks a lot for posting such nourishing, tasty recipes.
You have posted a recipe for “..Herb-Packed Green Curry”
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons Coconut Oil
1 can (14 oz) Coconut Milk
½ teaspoon Cumin Seed
½ teaspoon Black Pepper
2 cloves Garlic – minced
2 tablespoons Fresh Ginger – minced
1 teaspoon Garam Masala (you can find this online or in a health food store)
2 tablespoons Thai Green Chili Paste (you can find this in most grocery stores)
2 teaspoons Fresh Turmeric – finely chopped
1 Yellow Onion – chopped
2 RED PEPPERS – sliced
1 Large Eggplant – sliced into ½ inch cubes
2 cups Spinach – chopped ….the RED PEPPERS are meant to be sweet bell peppers…..correct?
Thanks,
Stephen
You have posted a recipe for “..Herb-Packed Green Curry”
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons Coconut Oil
1 can (14 oz) Coconut Milk
½ teaspoon Cumin Seed
½ teaspoon Black Pepper
2 cloves Garlic – minced
2 tablespoons Fresh Ginger – minced
1 teaspoon Garam Masala (you can find this online or in a health food store)
2 tablespoons Thai Green Chili Paste (you can find this in most grocery stores)
2 teaspoons Fresh Turmeric – finely chopped
1 Yellow Onion – chopped
2 RED PEPPERS – sliced
1 Large Eggplant – sliced into ½ inch cubes
2 cups Spinach – chopped
****….the RED PEPPERS are meant to be sweet bell peppers…..correct?