kodokan

Glad you liked it - it's not bad at all for a virtually instant curry. I also do Thai curries at home, using this range of pastes: . They're really excellent for something that's dirt cheap, and can live in the fridge for over a year once opened! If I can't be bothered to go shopping, I can take a tin of chickpeas, one of coconut milk, and a packet of frozen stir fry veg, and produce a reasonable meal.

But they're quite a lot spicier than the Pataks ones though, so probably not something your wife would enjoy. I'm at the other end of heat preference, but since I'm usually cooking for the family, I do things like stirring in a handful of chopped jalapeños after I've dished out the portions for the kids. I'm gradually working them up - my 10 yr old is up to Tikka Masala and will go to a Madras sort of heat level at a push; my 14 yr old manfully once ate the Vindaloo I made (but hasn't asked for it since...)

Nutmegger

Cold tongue was always part of the tea on Christmas Day when I was a kid. And very good it was, too!

AZ_Alba

As mentioned earlier by steer pike you might try lee lees market at Dobson and Warner. Have not been for a while but they used stock a variety. Also used to have hienz beans.
For eating out in Mesa have you tried Guru Palace or Indian Oven? Both are on Gilbert road near US 60.

sir_eccles

Not been to that one. Went to Mekong market which is huge and has live slithering things.

Uncle_Bob

I saw something like that too at the market i went too, also frozen octopus legs and refrigerated beef heart

Uncle_Bob

What does it taste like?

Nutmegger

The way it is served as a cold cut, it is simmered in seasoned water for quite a long time, then the tough other membrane is cut off, leaving just the lean meaty part, and it is coiled into a bowl and pressed. It is a long time since I had it, but it is basically like any other kind of ham-type cold meat.

Uncle_Bob

I've added the curry paste to my Amazon cart, i look forward to trying that. I like to cook up any kind of food that does a few days for taking in for my work lunch instead of a sandwich. I have home grown jalapenos I can add to
My kids are really good for eating veg and stuff but not good with anything spicy. Mild salsa sauce is the best they can do unfortunately.

Do you freeze any of the curry you mentioned? if so how are they when reheated?

kodokan

All the time - I know technically you're not supposed to freeze coconut milk, but it seems fine; I haven't noticed it getting all separated and splotchy. I even do things like add frozen green beans (the whole ones, not the shredded type), then refreeze a portion with them in. I'm not very purist, or over-fussy about a slight change in texture. It's still a million times better than shop-bought frozen ready meals, and worth the convenience trade some nights.

If I was adding cream or yog, I'd take out the 'to be frozen' portion first before adding that at the end of the cooking time. I have frozen soups with cream in before, when being absent-minded and adding it to the entire pot, but it's a little better if I don't.

The other thing I do is turn the leftover curry into soup: there always seems to be a couple of cups' worth in the bottom of the pan that's mostly liquid and some random lumps, so I pop in the stick blender, then have Thai Chicken and Coconut soup for lunch the next day.

Hope you enjoy the Thai pastes - I add around half a teaspoon per person, having experimented and found that 2 teaspoons of paste/ tin of coconut milk is a good ratio for a medium spiciness that all the family will eat. I'd probably double that amount for spice-loving adults.

GeoffM

That's news to me! For years I've been using the Thai curry pastes like the one you posted earlier and have done anything from meals from two to buffets for 30 with it, scaling accordingly. And leftovers get frozen all the time, again portions of 1 to maybe 4-5 at a time, and after reheating in even the most unorthodox way (microwave) they're fine.

Thai seems to be one of the few cuisines not altered for local tastes around the world. I even took a cooking course in Thailand once, albeit rather short.

kodokan

Just had a quick Google to see if I'd imagined about not freezing coconut milk, and it seems six one way, half a dozen the other. Like you said, I've never had a problem with it, despite reheating it in the micro on many occasions, or half thawing it and tipping a semi-melted lump into a saucepan to finish off. It seems quite forgiving.

Note about light/ lite coconut milk, for those who aren't used to buying it - don't bother. It's just the regular stuff watered down (and possibly with flour or something similar added to whiten and thicken it back up). Just get the normal stuff, and cut it half-and-half with water - it'll go twice as far, or have the same calorific effect for half the money.

GeoffM

And try to buy from an Asian shop as they can be as much as half the price of regular supermarkets - and better quality. Rare mitigating factors aside, a regular can should be under $2.

kodokan

Ha, that's exactly my price point! I wait to find it at $1.99 somewhere, and throw a load in the trolley.

One time, I was wandering through Sprouts and found it for 99c a tin - I stripped the shelf bare!

AndFinally

I tried Dhaba last night - it was pretty good so thanks for the recommendation!

tonrob

I had Christmas lunch there once! Was a bit empty, but food quite good.