Bite Me!

This Thai red curry is a favourite of mine - it's really quick and easy to make and tastes great.  I use shop-bought red curry paste which some would probably consider cheating, but as long as you get a decent paste I think that the end result is still pretty good.  I buy my paste from the Chinese shop in Brixton but Thai Taste is available from Waitrose and is excellent.  I would stay away from Marks & Spencers' red curry paste - I tried it recently and found it to be very vinegary, with a lot of chilli but not much flavour apart from that.

Ingredients

tbsp groundnut or other flavourless oil

two birds-eye red chillis, chopped fine

one onion, chopped fine

two cloves of garlic, chopped fine

one small butternut squash, peeled and cubed

three discs of frozen spinach (you can use fresh spinach if you prefer)

tin of coconut milk

two tbsp red curry paste

two handfuls frozen prawns (optional)

handful of finely chopped coriander (to garnish)

Method

Heat the oil and gently fry the chillis, onion and garlic until soft.  Add the spinach, squash, coconut milk and curry paste and stir well.  Cover and leave to simmer for about half an hour or until the squash is soft.  If using the prawns, add 5 mins before the end of cooking (if you prefer to use fresh spinach add this now too).  Garnish with the chopped coriander.

So that's it!  Couldn't be easier.  This is a fairly accommodating dish so you can substitute any vegetables that you think might also go well - mushrooms, peppers, courgettes and so forth.  This will keep for a couple of days in the fridge (longer if you don't use prawns).