Massaman Beef Curry

You know winter is actually here when you have to set your alarm fifteen minutes earlier in the morning to allow for the struggle of getting out of your warm bed in the morning. And when your walk to work takes about half the usual time because you're power walking to bring your heart rate up.

Ahhhh winter. It feels like you went away not that long ago!

I feel like it was only yesterday that I was packing away my winter coats, ugg boots and thick blankets and now I'm taking them back out again! Also making a reappearance is my trusty thermal cooker, which I have started using again on a weekly basis for my repertoire of soups, curries, stews and whatever else warm I can think of to get me through the winter.

Vegetable soups are my go-to when I'm busy because they are not only quick and simple to make, but also a great way to get in my 5 serves a day. But when I have a little more time I do like to get a little more adventurous with dishes like this Massaman curry which is one of our family's favourite Thai dishes. And with a thick, nutty coconut based sauce- what's not to love?

Whilst there are plenty of recipes available, I chose this version specifically as it uses only ingredients that I already had in the pantry and uses store bought Massaman Curry Paste to save the trouble of having to source all the ingredients to make my own. The end result is slightly less creamy than I had imagined, but nevertheless delicious- we mopped up every last drop of the sauce!

Massaman Beef Curry
From Cooking Thai Food in American Kitchens via Whirlpool

1 kg Stewing beef sliced/cubed
3 cups coconut milk
5-7 small potatoes
2 onions cut in 4 pieces
3 tablespoons Maesri Masman curry paste
1 teaspoon lemon juice or tamarind juice
3 tablespoons nampla (fish sauce)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 (half) cup shelled peanuts
1/2 (half) cup vegetable oil
1 red apple sliced
1 green apple sliced (I grate my apples so that they melt into the curry and add some sweetness)

1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil, add the beef. Cook until brown (5 minutes).
2. Add coconut milk and bring to the boil. Lower the heat, cover and let simmer for 2 hours max or until the meat is tender.
3. Remove ½ cup of the liquid from the saucepan and put into a frying pan; mix in the curry paste and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
4. Then pour the curry paste mixture into the meat mixture. Add and stir in nampla, lemon juice, sugar, onions, potatoes and peanuts.
5. Cover and cook for 20 minutes more on low heat.
6. Add the apple, stir and remove from heat immediately. Serve with rice.