Red Curry in a Hurry

I thought it might be helpful to outline how this dinner came together. So, here's a minute by minute plan for how to prepare a Thai-style curry with rice and a some sliced cucumber on the side.

I will assume veggies are washed, and the shrimp are thawed and peeled.

Thai-Style Red Curry with Shrimp

Start the clocks!

0:00 Rinse 1 cup of jasmine rice in a strainer. Put rice into rice cooker with 1 1/2 cups water. Start rice cooker. (You can also make your rice in a saucepan - but I will assume you know how to do that.)

0:05 Pour yourself a glass of wine, change out of your work clothes, and c'mon back to the kitchen.

0:15 Put 1 Tablespoon red or green curry paste into a saucepan over medium-high heat and add 1 can coconut milk, a few dashes of fish sauce (to taste) and 1 cup of chicken broth. Bring to a simmer. Let simmer for five minutes.

While the broth is simmering - take half an English cucumber and slice it into rounds. Sprinkle the cucumber with salt and a little rice vinegar. Salad's done.

0:22 Turn the heat down to medium low and add about 1/2 pound peeled, thawed shrimp, a few tablespoons each of chopped mint and cilantro, and a squeeze of lime.

0:25 The shrimp should be cooked through about now. Depending on the size of the shrimp, they may take a little longer.

0:27 Put the cooked rice into a bowl, ladle shrimp and coconut milk broth over rice. Sprinkle additional cilantro and mint over the top. Add sliced chilies, more lime juice or fish sauce to taste.

Stop the clocks! It's time for dinner. This recipe serves two-ish.