During my time with the army (NORFORCE), a Gurkha friend of mine learned of my predilection for spicy food and taught me this recipe. It...
During my time with the army (NORFORCE), a Gurkha friend of mine learned of my predilection for spicy food and taught me this recipe. It hails from Phaplu, a town in the Solukhumbu district of Nepal. The White PPL curry sauce derived its peculiar name from nothing other than PPL being the airport code derivation for Phaplu and was referred to as such by the locals to describe the whitish sauce they make as its base.
White PPL Curry despite being mild in heat is very flavoursome and the aromatics are heavenly thanks to the combination of zesty ingredients. Great for those that like their curries light on the chilli but wild on the taste.
INGREDIENTS
Meat
Approx 800g chicken thighs cubed (can substitute pork or venison)
Spice Paste
2 shallots roughly chopped
2 large cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
Small red or brown onion diced
4cm length fresh ginger, peeled and grated
4cm length of galangal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
4 large kaffir lime leaves roughly chopped
1 stalk of lemon-grass (white part, chopped finely)
1/2 teaspoon fresh turmeric
2 green chillies roughly chopped
Approx a dozen individual curry leaves (or 1 tsp curry powder)
Other Ingredients
1 small green pepper (capsicum) chopped finely
1 cup whole cashews
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
Extra salt to season meat
1/2 cup full cream milk
1/4 cup pouring cream
Small can (approx 250ml-300ml) coconut cream
1/4 cup yoghurt
Vegetable oil for cooking
METHOD
Season the cubed chicken with a few large pinches of salt, white pepper and the brown sugar. Mix and set aside.
Grind or finely chop cashews.
Add the shallots, garlic, onion, ginger, galangal, teaspoon salt, coriander, cumin, kaffir lime leaves, lemon-grass, turmeric, green chillies and curry leaves to a food processor or a heavy mortar and pestle and process until it becomes a smooth paste.
Heat a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Once hot add a couple of tablespoons worth of vegetable oil and then add the cubed chicken, turning till browned.
Once browned remove meat from saucepan and set aside.
Add another tablespoon of oil and then add the white PPL spice paste, continuously stirring to avoid it burning. Once you can smell the aromatic fragrance of the spice paste strongly (but before it browns) add the finely chopped green pepper (capsicum) and stir through for a further 2 minute before pouring in milk, pouring cream and coconut cream. Stir for a further 2 minutes.
Transfer the previously cooked chicken meat (and any juices) to the saucepan along with the cashews, stir for half a minute then allow to sit.
Bring the curry up to a gentle simmer, stir briefly then turn the heat down to low and simmer for a further 20 min stirring occasionally, the sauce should thicken.
To serve, take the curry off the heat, stir in yoghurt and serve with Basmati rice.
Please note the above recipe was created specifically for this tongue-in-cheek post, however it IS edible and tastes pretty damn good too. The back story on the origins of the recipe is a subtle blend of part truth and part fiction and is intended to poke fun at the 'news' described in the explanation and disclaimer piece found here : https://goo.gl/3BvRWJ
I am not liable for any outrage or fights at the family dinner table you may cause by not reading this work in its entirety!
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