Red Curry and Coconut Tofu with Cherry Tomatoes and Green Beans

RECIPE

Total Time: 25 minutes (not counting the chopping)

Serves 4

Notes from the cookbook:

For a long time, I was resistant to the idea of jarred Thai curry paste. It seemed too much like cheating. After all, I'm not the kind of person given to spooning jarred gravy over my Thanksgiving turkey or jarred tomato sauce over my pasta. Cooking these things from scratch is my livelihood. So why would jarred curry paste be any different. Then, a curry-loving friend explained that curry paste is not a prepared sauce. It is a condiment, like Sriracha or mustard or mango chutney. It's meant to be an element of a sauce, not to be the sauce. Since then, Thai curry paste has earned a permanent place between the preserved lemons and he miso, and I use a tablespoonful whenever I want to add toasty, spicy, earthy notes to stir-fries, soups, stews, and sauces. In this recipe, I keep things pretty streamlined, sautéing the a base of aromatics—onion, ginger, garlic, chiles, and cilantro stems—then building a pan sauce from there with the coconut milk and curry paste before adding the tofu and vegetables. It's a very adaptable curry. You can substitute cubes of chicken breast or shrimp for the tofu, and other vegetables for the ones I've listed below (sugar snap or snow peas are great stand-ins for the green beans, by the way). Just adjust the cooking times if need be.

Ingredients

• 1 package (14 to 16 ounces) extra-firm tofu, drained, patted dry, and cut into 1-inch cubes [I use medium-firm or firm tofu.]

• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more for seasoning

• 1 tablespoon coconut, peanut, or safflower oil [I used coconut oil.]

• 1 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced

• 2 shallots or 1 small onion, minced [I used shallots]

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 fresh Thai or 2 Serrano chiles, seeded and thinly sliced [I cut back on the heat, used half a small Jalapeño]

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro stems

• 4 ounces shiitake mushroom caps (about 1 1/2 cups)

• 3 tablespoons prepared Thai red curry paste [I used one small jar when doubling the recipe]

• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk [I used a little more than a cup]

• 2 teaspoons Asian fish sauce, plus more as needed

• Grated zest and juice of 1 lime

• 1 cup cut green beans, in 1-inch lengths

• 1/2 cup of cherry tomatoes

• Fresh basil or cilantro leaves, torn, for garnish

Instructions

1. Season the tofu cubes lightly with salt.

2. Heat the coconut oil in a 10- or 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ginger, shallots, garlic, chile, and cilantro stems, and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until they are golden brown and tender, about 5 minutes. Season with the 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Stir in the curry paste and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in the coconut milk, scraping up any curry paste with a wooden spoon. Add the fish sauce, lime zest, and lime juice. Add the tofu cubes, green beans, and cherry tomatoes. Simmer, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens slightly and the green beans are tender, 7 to 10 minutes. Taste, and add more salt and/or fish sauce if needed.

3. Serve with a scattering of basil on top [I used cilantro.]