Jungle Curry of Fish and Vegetables with Fried Shallots

Jungle Curry is a type of curry made mostly in Northern Thailand, its main difference between most other Thai curries, is that it does not have coconut milk in it. It also usually contains krachai, giving it a delicious spicy flavour. You can use any combination of vegetables in it, though it's better to use more substantial ones, ie. ones that will retain their shape with cooking. We used the Southeast Asian Chicken Broth that we made earlier for this curry, it turned out well, and also gave it a good flavour. This is quite an unusual and interesting, flavourful curry, that could be adapted to use meats such as pork or chicken.

Jungle Curry of Fish and Vegetables with Fried Shallots
adapted from a recipe from Thai Food by David Thompson
1 whole small red snapper, cleaned
1 cups chopped mixed vegetables (cauliflower, carrots, orange pumpkin, Thai eggplant)
1 Tbsp Red Curry Paste
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 cup stock
1 Tbsp fish sauce
4 small "fingers" krachai, sliced thin
2 Tbsp shredded pak chii farang (long-leaf coriander)
fried shallots, for garnish

Dust the fish with flour, shaking off the excess. Pan-fry the whole fish in about 1 tablespoon of oil, about 10 minutes, until crispy and cooked through. Set aside. Remove flesh from fish bones and flake.

Add red curry paste and minced garlic and fry over a high heat with 1 tablespoon oil until fragrant enough to produce a sneeze. Add stock and krachai and, when boiling, the chopped mixed vegetables. Simmer until just cooked, about 2 minutes. Add flaked fish and fish sauce; bring to heat again. Finish with shallots and pak chii farang.