Take a risk on something different. If you have never cooked Indian or Thai food, go for it! Many curry recipes are surprisingly simple. This is just chicken thighs fried in oil. Remove them from the pan and leave the drippings. Add onion, potato and carrots. Fry in the oil and juice until they start to become tender and develop a little browning. Add coconut milk (2 cans in this pan) and curry powder to taste. Then go ahead and add a little more. Simmer until the veggies are almost done, then add the chicken back into the pan and simmer until it looks like everything has incorporated the flavors.
I used a pre made curry powder from a local mideastern market. No idea what spices were in it. It was just in a bag labeled yellow curry powder. There are thousands of variations of what westerners call curry seasonings. Most have other names in their native lands. There are many great books on making eastern food including curry variations. Don’t sweat it if you know nothing about eastern cooking. It is really not too hard to get started. Learn to make some sauces, add veggies and maybe some meat, serve over rice or some other starch like potatoes or even yams.
The Middle and Far East have a rich culinary history that the west is largely unaware of. Don’t be afraid to delve into it. If you make a mistake, so what. We have all made dishes destined to go straight into the garbage bin. It happens. But give Eastern food a good try. There are many books and internet resources out there to help you get started.
John
Black Forge Kitchen 