So I’ve been unemployed for more than a month now, and while it may have been fun the first few days, my patience is wearing thin. Things I used to be able to enjoy (eating out, going shopping, taking nice vacations) are now a distant memory. I can’t even remember the last time I left the house with anything besides my gym outfit on. (And seriously, I doubt my old track pants from high school, which are a tad tight now, and my ratty old south park t-shirts from signing up for new credit cards in college, even constitute as a gym outfit.)

But as much as I love shopping and adding new pieces to my closet, I miss eating out even more. My hubby and I use to eat out every weekend, as a treat for my slaving away in the kitchen for an hour a day, five times a week. But those days are long gone (hubby says we need to save money for our mortgage and bills, and lectures me about how these are hard times and that I need to think outside the box).

One of the restaurants I long for the most, is this cute little Thai place in the city. It is small, but quaint, which makes it quite romantic especially since the place is lit by small candles (and everyone looks better in candlelight!). They have the best Curry Chicken there.

Since eating out is no longer in our budget, I have now been given the task to create my own delicious curry to be enjoyed in our dining room (the only up side is that I can now control the lighting in the room, and on the days where I am too tired to drag my ass to the shower after a sweaty day at the gym, or too lazy to wash the free makeup trial I got at the local mall by a blind lady at the MAC counter because I had nothing better to do, we are practically eating in the dark).

I have made curry many times at home before, but I always used the store bought curry cubes that you simply add water too. But these days I’ve been craving for the real thing! So I bought all the ingredients, and even bought modern white plates just like the restaurant, in hopes of having the same happy feeling I get from eating out. And sometimes…I even amaze myself!

I couldn’t believe how good it turned out! It is the best curry chicken my mouth has ever tasted (and my hubby’s)! The chicken was juicy and tasty, the potatoes and carrots were cooked perfectly, and the curry sauce was light with a hint of coconut (I just drooled onto my hello kitty robe). It is truly perfection.

My hubby got so upset thinking about how much money we wasted eating at that Thai restaurant week after week, when I could’ve easily made the same thing at home but even better! Which gave me a great idea. I now have a tip jar on my dining room table, where I politely ask for half of what we use to pay at the restaurant for the same dish. (Now that’s a deal, if you ask me. New gym outfit, here I come!).

So without further delay, here is my Curry Chicken with Coconut Milk recipe!

Ingredients:

• 1lb boneless and skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces
• half a bag of baby carrots, or two regular carrots cut into bite size pieces
• 3 medium sized russet potatoes, cut into large chunks (about the size of 2 bite sized pieces. The smaller you cut the potatoes, the faster they will disappear when you cook them, so if you like potatoes, leave them bigger)
• 1 medium sized white onion , sliced
• 1 large green bell pepper, cut into bite size pieces
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 slices of ginger
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 teaspoon oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

curry chicken with coconut, served with coconut rice

Marinade:

• 2 tablespoons garlic salt
• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon white pepper
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• 2 teaspoon Lee Kum Kee chicken powder
• 2 teaspoons curry powder

Directions:

1. Put the chicken with the marinade ingredients in a bowl, and set aside
2. Boil a pot of water, and add the oil and salt in the water, followed by the carrots and potatoes. Let boil about 10 mins, or until the carrots and potatoes are slightly tender on the outside, but still a little hard on the inside. Then rinse under cold water, and set aside.
3. Heat a pan with the oil, garlic, ginger, and onions, and let cook for about 3 mins, or until slightly brown.
4. Add the marinated chicken, and stir fry about 7 mins, or until chicken is no longer pink.
5. Add the coconut milk, and turn to low heat, until boiling.
6. Add the green bell pepper.
7. Serve over rice, and enjoy!