I absolutely love curry of all types from Indian and Thai to Malaysian and Chinese or in this case Vietnamese. Curries originated in India and therefore influence the styles of other countries. A curry is simply a dish of meat with a sauce made up of a complex combination of strong spices and herbs. This dish is not very spicy but rather results in a heady and aromatic dish.

I went to college in Duluth Minnesota in the early 90’s which at the time was not exactly an ethnically diverse location. There was, however, one Vietnamese restaurant down on Canal Park called Taste of Saigon (it’s still there today). This place is where I ate of any sort of curry for the first time.

It would be years before I realized that there were many other curries out there. I first attempted to make this version ten years later for three young girls, one Canadian and two Kiwi’s from New Zealand working at Lutsen Resort with me for the summer. Enjoy.

What you’ll need

Approximately 1 hour total time

Dutch oven

1 lb. skinless chicken breasts cut into bit sized pieces (feel free to use thighs, they taste better to me)

2 waxy potatoes such as Yukon gold cut into lg cubes

2 T peanut oil

4 stalks of lemon grass, just the tender bits chopped

8 shallots minced

3 garlic cloves minced

2 fresh red chilies diced

2 T mild Indian curry powder

1 C coconut milk

2 C chicken broth

1 tsp salt

Fry up the potatoes in 1 T of the oil over medium high heat until lightly browned. Remove and set aside on a paper towel lined plate.

Heat the 2nd T of oil and sauté the lemongrass and shallots together with the garlic and chilies until soft, 2-3 minutes.

Add the curry powder and stir constantly for 2 minutes. Add the chicken and continue to stir until the chicken is opaque.

Add back the potatoes along with the coconut milk, salt and broth. Bring to a boil and cover. Set heat to medium low and simmer for 30 min. Go have a drink.

Serve with white rice or rice noodles as well as fish sauce and crushed red pepper or sambal olek as condiments.