Yellow Curry Octopus (leftover ingredients)

Thai curry is one of those things that can either be simple and quick, or absolutely backbreaking. We learned it the backbreaking way, pounding it out in heavy granite mortars at one of Thailand's ubiquitous cooking schools. My memories of the lessons include walking home, bleary eyed and dehydrated, with aching shoulders. The truth is that making your own curry paste is better, but it's something we do only once in a while.

For weeknight meals, we recommend a simpler route, and one taken by nearly every Thai family: Get it premade. You can find a tub of curry paste for a couple of bucks at any Thai market (we tend towards the Mae Ploy brand, which is a little salty, but otherwise ok). It will keep in your refrigerator forever, and be ready to kick out a cheap, quick, and delicious meal in no time.

This recipe is made by combining leftover ingredients from the Lomo Saltado and the Pasta with Octopus.

Final note: Somewhere on the internet, we found (and subsequently can't find again) a recipe where someone braised the octopus from scratch in a Thai coconut curry. This strikes us as capable of producing an infinitely better result, and we're going to try it some time.


Yellow Curry Octopus

2/3 cup octopus, cooked and skin removed
2/3 cup onions, sliced
½ cup potatoes, cut into small pieces
½ cup grape tomatoes
2 tbsp yellow curry paste (though you may need to add more)
1 can coconut milk
Sugar (start with 1-2 tsp)
Fish sauce
2 kaffir lime leaves, sliced (optional)
1 tbsp basil, chopped (Thai holy, if you can get it)

Jasmine rice, cooked

1. Heat a frying pan and oil and tomatoes and sear until skins start to break. Remove
2. Clean out pan again, heat. Then add coconut milk and heat until it starts boiling around the edges.
3. Add curry paste and stir until incorporated.
4. Add onions and potatoes, and cook until tender.
5. Taste. If necessary add sugar, fish sauce and adjust.
6. Add tomatoes, octopus, and kaffir lime leaves, and heat through.
7. Remove from heat and add the basil.
8. Serve over rice.