Happy 2024 everyone!
As I reflect on the past year, the highs were high and the lows… felt like  bad lows in the moment but were honestly, not all that bad. So I will call it a win. If you’re 2023 was a low, I hope 2024 brings you a renewed sense of vitality, creativity, and determination. I know that’s I am going to try to emulate this month. 

In line with reinvigorated creativity, I decided to bring myself back to this same time last year when Nick and I were Thailand. I was so excited about all the foods I’d tried, the cooking class we took, and how inspired I was to recreate all the new flavors. I immediately came home and was eager to recreate all our favorites, incorporating Thai cuisine into our usual California American fare. A stainless steel wok was, of course, waiting at our doorstep when we got back… it was a must buy!

So as an homage to our honeymoon, a reminder to stay inspired and try new things, and as a celebration of all the possibilities to come this new year, I am dedicating the next month to recipes learned, refined, and repeated from our honeymoon in Thailand. 

To kick us off, I am starting with the tried and true meal we ordered almost every day – Thai Green Curry. 

As a gluten free person trying to survive 3 weeks in Thailand, I won’t say it was easy, nor will I say I 100% succeeded (I did feel like I hate slight gluten poisoning the entire time). This is because Asian countries love MSG. It adds flavor, it’s a preservative, but is definitely not GF. So even when you try your hardest to eat steamed vegetables and dishes that are usually GF here in the states (like pad thai), there is still a high chance they threw a dash of MSG in… just for good measure. 

I became privy to this within days of our honeymoon. Nick and I signed up for a cooking class in Chang Mai – an activity I was DYING to do – and it included a full day of harvesting ingredients, learning techniques, and trying multiple dishes. The school was kind enough to accommodate my dietary issues, but also opened my eyes to the reality of what our trip would be… a lot of stomach aches. MSG city!

Regardless, I cannot stress enough how incredibly influential and amazing both the cooking class and trip was. I refuse to let Celiac Disease become my identity or dictate where I travel. 

SO, sorry for my long rant, I try to keep these short, but to start off my Thai food series, I feel compelled to give context because the recipes I am about to share where learned in Thailand, but adapted to not include their beloved MSG. And not all the dishes I will be sharing are 100% Thai, but learned combination of flavors over time. So traditional in essence, yes. But not entirely true to form. 

THIS recipe is verbatim though… if you can find green eggplant! Otherwise it tastes similar to substitute with purple. 

Our tried and true order in Thailand, because they inherently do NOT use MSG, was Green Curry. We learned to make it there and now have it in rotation. It’s basically a one-wok dish + rice. Delicious, hearty, and naturally GF. 

Save this one folks! You won’t find it anywhere else!

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. chicken breast

1 eggplant (green if possible but I have yet to find so simply use purple)

1 green bell pepper

1 red bell pepper

1 yellow onion

1 cup coconut milk

1 tbsp. green curry paste

1 tbsp. cooking oil of choice

1 tbsp. fish sauce

2 tsp. sugar

Handful of fresh basil

3-4 kaffir lime leaf

Toppings & sides: thai red chili, green onion, 1-2 cups cooked jasmine rice

INSTRUCTIONS

• Heat cooking oil in a wok on low heat. When hot, add green curry paste and ½ cup of coconut milk. Stir until combined and bring to a simmer.
• Cube chicken breast into 1-in chunks, then add to the simmering sauce. Cook chicken through (approx 3-4 minutes). 
• Add in additional ½ cup of coconut milk, fish sauce, sugar, the kaffir leaf (whole), cubed eggplant (same size as the chicken), diced bell peppers and onion. Cook over medium heat until the eggplant is tender.
• Remove from heat, add basil. 
• Enjoy!