Thai Red Teal Curry

Teal by nature is a very strongly flavoured meat and very much like a standard duck breast, it’s pretty lean bar a thicker layer of fat along the top. The bold flavour of the meat can take other strong flavours so my mind immediately went to Thailand. This sweet, spicy, salty and sour Thai curry sauce is so easy and quick to make and will be miles better than the takeaway! Served with plenty of fresh lime and some steamed rice, this Thai Red Teal Curry would make a perfect Friday night supper.

Preparation

  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook time: 15 minutes
  • Serves: 2 people

Ingredients

Thai Red Curry Paste
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds
  • 2 fresh Thai bird’s eye chillies
  • 1 lemongrass stalk
  • 2cm piece ginger
  • 2 fresh Thai bird’s eye chillies
  • 1cm piece galangal
  • 3 fresh kaffir lime leaves
  • 1 banana shallot
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 tsp shrimp paste
  • 1 tsp paprika
For the curry
  • 4 teal breasts, or duck breasts
  • 1 red pepper
  • 4 spring onions
  • 10 fresh lychees
  • 2 limes
  • 2-3 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp flavourless oil
  • 1 tin of full fat coconut milk
To serve
  • Handful of fresh coriander
  • Thai jasmine or brown rice

Instructions

  1. To make the paste, add all of the ingredients to a small blender or pestle and mortar. Blend or pound until a very smooth paste has formed, thinning with a little water if required.
  2. For the curry, peel the lychees and remove the stones. Chop the red pepper and spring onions into a chunky dice. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the spring onions, red pepper and the curry paste. Cook out for 3-4 minutes until the vegetables are softened. Add the lychees and the coconut milk and cook out for a further 5 minutes until the curry has thickened and come together.
  3. In a separate cold frying pan place the teal breasts skin side down. Turn the ring up to a medium heat and fry for 3 minutes, until the fat has rendered out of the skin and it has crisped up. Flip the breasts over and cook for a further two minutes for a medium centre. Remove from the pan and allow to rest for at least five minutes.
  4. To serve, add fish sauce and fresh lime juice to the curry sauce to taste. Spoon into bowls and top with the teal breasts and fresh coriander. Serve immediately with plenty of steamed jasmine or brown rice.

Thank you to Masterchef 2017 finalist Lorna Robertson for creating this recipe for us.

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