INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/3 cup thinly sliced scallions, white and green parts, from 4-5 scallions
2 cloves garlic, minced
2½ tablespoons Thai green curry paste
1 (14-ounce) can coconut milk
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon dark or light brown sugar
2 pounds large, extra large (26-30 per lb) or jumbo (21-25 per lb) shrimp, peeled and deveined (see note), thawed if frozen
Juice of 1 lime (about 2 tablespoons), plus more lime wedges for serving
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro, Thai basil, or Italian basil (or a combination)
DIRECTIONS
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 3 minutes. If the onions start to brown, reduce the heat to medium. Add the scallions, garlic, and green curry paste, and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes more. Add the coconut milk, water, fish sauce, and sugar and bring to a gentle boil. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring frequently, until the shrimp are pink and just cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and sprinkle with the cilantro (or basil). Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary, and serve with jasmine rice.
Note: For the shrimp, I recommend buying frozen shrimp labeled “shell split and deveined.” Most shrimp are cleaned and flash frozen shortly after being caught, so the “fresh” shrimp you see in the seafood case at the supermarket are typically thawed frozen shrimp. Who knows how long they’ve been sitting there, so you’re better off buying frozen shrimp and defrosting it yourself. Come dinnertime, all you have to do is run the shrimp under water to defrost, and then peel.
