Don’t get me wrong I love holiday food. And I look forward to eating it. Which is why I can’t make, talk about or eat anymore right now. I’ve got to gear up for another big food celebration at the end of the month, and to enjoy it fully, my tastebuds need to take a break!

This recipe is great because you can make it as a soup, or thicken it to go over rice. Both ways are delicious of course. Its works for dinner or lunch with a salad and some fresh spring rolls, or as a more substantial dish over brown rice.

Coconut Curry with Tofu

Ingredients:

2 stalks lemongrass

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

2 cans coconut milk

1 Tablespoon fresh grated ginger

3-4 teaspoons red curry paste

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon dulse flakes

3 cups broth

1 Tablespoon +2 teaspoons umeboshi plum vinegar

1 Tablespoon soy sauce

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup baby corn, cut into bite sized pieces (about 1/2 can)

1 cup straw mushrooms, halved (about 1/2 can)

1 package extra firm tofu, cut into 1/4 inch cubes

1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice

3 Tablespoons Kuzu, in rock form

cilantro, to garnish

Procedure:

Cut the lemongrass into 1 inch pieces and then in half. Wash them.

In a small saucepan, add coconut milk and lemongrass pieces. Heat over low and bring to a simmer. Put the lid on and simmer 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow to cool while you prepare the rest of your ingredients.

In a large saucepan. Cook ginger, curry paste, curry powder and dulse flakes for about 1 minute. Slowly pour in the broth, stirring continuously and making sure to break up the lumps.

Add umeboshi vinegar, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.

In a small ramekin, add the kuzu and enough water to dissolve it completely.

Stir the strained coconut milk into the broth. Bring the soup back to a simmer, then turn down the heat again. Add mushrooms, baby corn and tofu. Let simmer for 5 more minutes.

Add lime juice. You can eat the soup just like this with a little cilantro sprinkled on top and its jammin!! ( I failed to take a picture of it at this point…grr..but next time I make it as a soup I will put it here- just pretend its there.)

Add the kuzu slurry to the soup and stir continuously until it thickens. This happens pretty quickly.

Serve over brown rice and garnish with cilantro.

So good!