Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons chopped garlic
• 3 tablespoons chopped shallots
• 2 tablespoons fresh galangal
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger
• Rind of 1 kaffir lime (substitute regular lime zest or kaffir lime leaf)
• 2 tablespoons ground dried red chilies
• Fish sauce, to taste
• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped holy basil leaves (if unavailable, sweet basil can be used)
• 1 cup coconut cream
• 3 boneless chicken breasts, sliced into small chunks
• 2 cups coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 cup chopped baby eggplant
• 1 Thai red chili, stemmed, seeded, and thinly sliced
• Steamed rice, for serving

Instructions

1. To make the paste, grind and mash all the ingredients together in a mortar until a thick, red paste is formed.
2. To make the curry, first heat the wok until very hot and add the coconut cream until it begins to boil. Then, add the chicken and curry paste and fry together for a few minutes. Next, add the coconut milk, fish sauce and baby eggplant along with the fresh chilies and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and serve with steamed rice.