Green Curry with Red Jasmine Rice

If you're reading this, you might be kind of geeky about food like I am. I get all excited about discovering some "new" ingredient. Whether it's a spice or vegetable I've never used, or just an unexpected twist on something familiar, I can be found exclaiming aloud to myself in the grocery aisle, "look at that!" Well, maybe you don't talk to yourself in public like I do about finding teeny dried chiles (that are so cute!), but for the sake of discussion let's assume you can relate.

You can imagine my reaction to finding red jasmine rice at Whole Foods. I've cooked with red quinoa before, but not red jasmine rice. It retains its rich burgundy color after cooking, and has a slightly nutty taste. The cooking instructions threw me off, because they call for boiling it uncovered, but I followed them and it worked just fine.

This time I topped the pretty Cabernet-colored rice with a Thai green curry of potatoes, mushrooms, carrots, red bell pepper, coconut milk, and cilantro. Delicious, as any dish with coconut milk tends to be. But I'm already thinking of what else to do with red jasmine rice. Hmm...I think there is a red-themed holiday coming up in a couple of weeks. Perhaps red rice would be perfect for a romantic dish!

Green Curry with Red Jasmine Rice

Adapted from Gourmet

About 4 servings

1/2 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced into bite-sized pieces

1 small onion, chopped

10 ounces baby bella mushrooms, sliced

1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

salt and pepper to taste

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tablespoons vegan green curry paste

1 pound russet potatoes, peeled, halved, and thinly sliced

2 carrots, thinly sliced

14 ounces coconut milk

1/2 cup vegetable broth

handful cilantro, chopped

Sriracha to taste, as a condiment

red jasmine rice, prepared according to package

Heat oil in a large skillet with a lid over medium heat. Add bell pepper, onion, mushrooms, and salt and pepper. Saute about 5 minutes. Add garlic and curry paste. Stir and saute about 1 minute. Add potatoes, carrots, coconut milk, and broth. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally. Simmer until potatoes are nearly done. Uncover and simmer until sauce thickens. Add cilantro and serve over rice.