Red curries come in many different forms. I chose this one to write up because it seemed a little unusual and distinctly vegetarian. It's also delicious. Tofu and pineapple really go well together.
I first had this particular dish in southern Thailand on a beach called Ao Nang. That's a crazy place with a big strip of shops and cafes catering to mostly Scandinavian visitors. It's quite a family oriented resort, although there are a few dodgy bars tucked behind the shops. I think most people who go there are package tourists with little time and plenty of money. It's quite expensive compared to other places nearby, but all in all the atmosphere is relaxed and pleasant.
I've been near Ao Nang a few times over the years but usually just in passing on the way to one of the nearby beaches by long-tail boat. The beach at Ao Nang isn't very good and there are stunning ones on the nearby peninsula, but they are only accessible by sea. One year, however, Sveta and I spent a few weeks in Krabi, which is close by but not on the coast. We were really trying to save money and the fare on the long-tail boats on top of the fare to Ao Nang from Krabi by pick up, was more than we could afford. We did try to go to Rai Ley beach by Kayak once, but a strong wind and the backwash from the long-tails as we rounded the headland under towering limestone cliffs made the experience a distinctly uncomfortable one, so we turned round and came back. After that we spent time on Ao Nang beach when we wanted to swim and it really was quite enjoyable. Mostly, we took our own food and drinks to keep our costs down, but occasionally we would pop into one of the restaurants on the strip for a change. The Thai food generally isn't as good as in other places, but this was one of the better meals we had.
But this is just one idea for red curry. You could try out the recipe with other combinations of ingredients. And if you don't have all the ingredients for the curry paste don't worry: you can leave some out and your curry will still taste really good.
This pot of curry will do about four people when you add steamed rice.
For the curry Paste:
3 cloves of garlic
A piece of ginger root and/or a piece of galangal
root
5 or 6 dried red chillies (or more) or a teaspoon of chilli powder
A few white (or black) peppercorns
A teaspoon of coriander seeds
A half teaspoon of cumin seeds
A teaspoon of paprika
2 or 3 tablespoons of soy sauce
Juice and half the rind from a small lime
(a kaffir lime if you can find one)
Other ingredients:
Three or four 5-6 cm bits of lemon grass
A few kaffir lime leaves
A few sprigs of basil
A piece of cinnamon stick
Half a can of pineapple chunks
About 200g tofu
About 400 ml of coconut milk
Oil
Salt
If you're using dried lemon grass or lime leaves, put them in a small bowl and cover with boiling water before you do anything else; then leave them to soak while you prepare the other ingredients. If you can't find fresh galangal, you might be able to get dried, in which case, toss that into the hot water instead of trying to pound it into the paste.
To make the curry paste, start by grinding the coriander seeds, cumin seeds and peppercorns until they're fairly powdered. Crush the chillies into the mix and give it another smash around then add the paprika. Put this powder aside in another container and then pound the fresh ingredients: garlic, galangal (and/or ginger), lime zest, all roughly chopped first. Smash them to a rough pulp then mix with the spice powder, soy sauce and lime juice. That's your curry paste ready.
Chop the tofu into pieces similar in size to the pineapple chunks.
Heat some oil in a large deep pan and fry the curry paste gently for five minutes or so, stirring constantly, then add hot water (maybe about a pint and a half, or enough to half fill the pan). Add the coconut milk, tofu, pineapple, lemon grass and lime leaves (if using dried ingredients, add the water which the lemon grass and lime leaves were soaking in, too), and maybe some more water if required (we're aiming for a soupy consistency). Raise the heat, and when it all starts boiling, turn the heat down again to a simmer and cover the pan. Cook for a further eight to ten minutes, adding salt to taste. When the curry is ready, stir in some chopped basil and remove for the heat.
Serve in soup bowls with a small bowl or plate of steamed rice for each person.