Red Shrimp and Sweet Potato Curry

Sometimes, I strike out. 

And usually, it's when I try to make stir fry or some kind of Asian cuisine. (Okay it's other times, too. In fact, back when this was just a food blog I had a category called "Bottom Drawer Recipes" - where recipes went to DIE, because they sucked. There were quite a few there....) 

Last night, I tried AGAIN to make stir fry and I'll just cut to the chase: It was foul. I don't understand! I know how to cook! I am GREAT at following recipes! And yet, stir fries: fail, fail, fail every. freakin'. time!

So after last night's "Chicken Cashew Stir Fry" - which was reviewed and dubbed by hundreds of reviewers as "the best stir fry ever" and " a keeper" (LIES) - I gave up.

Almost.

I asked my Facebook friends to save me from another bad stir fry and send me all their favorites. 70+ comments later, I remembered: I actually DID have a good Asian-inspired recipe that didn't suck, I just forgot about it. All my friends' stir fry recipes jogged my memory and brought this one back:

Nigella Lawson's Red Curry with Shrimp and Sweet Potatoes from her book "Nigella Express." Her recipe also has chunks of mango which is *super* delicious, but I opted for a red bell pepper to cut the sugar down a bit. I used light coconut milk to reduce the fat content as well. 

May you have better luck with stir fries and curries than I do. Start here and you can't go wrong.

A successful rebound with Red Curry over Brown Rice. 

Serves 2-4

INGREDIENTS

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 Tbs. oil

2 Tbs. red Thai curry paste 

1 1/4 c. light coconut milk

1 1/4 c. low-sodium chicken stock

2 1/2 tsp. fish sauce (nam pla) 

2 1/2 c. sweet potato cubes

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped into pieces about the same size as the sweet potato cubes

2 c. frozen raw shrimp, thawed

1/2 a lime, juiced

1 scallion, chopped

3-4 Tbs. fresh cilantro, chopped

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and garlic. Cook for about a minute and then add curry paste.

2. Whisk in coconut milk, chicken stock, and fish sauce. Bring to a boil.

3. Add sweet potato and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover partially and cook for about 15 minutes, until potatoes are tender. 

4. Add red bell pepper and cover partially, cooking for 5 more minutes.

5. Add shrimp. Bring the sauce back to a boil. Add lime juice and scallions. Cook for another minute or two until shrimp are cooked through.

6. Serve over brown rice or cauliflower rice with a wedge of lime. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime.