Whatever fresh vegetables you stir fry, in the end, it comes down to extraordinary curry sauce. This simple Thai curry dish is without pretension and comes together in 20 minutes in a single pan. This recipe features sunflower butter and coconut milk and is dairy free, gluten free, and vegan.
Combine the Thai curry ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy.
Cook the Curry
Heat a wok or skillet over medium heat. Add the oil and warm until it begins to shimmer. If at any point, the oil smokes, lower the heat.
If using protein, add the protein to the oil first and cook for a few minutes. Add the vegetables in groups, starting with the ones that cook fastest. I like to start with sliced onion, followed by mushrooms, bok choy (white part first), snap peas, celery, and ending with zucchini, carrot, or the greens of the bok choy.
Cook the vegetables just until slightly tender, then ladle in a small amount of sauce. Start with about 1/4 cup, then add more if needed. This is a concentrated sauce, so a little goes far. Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve.
Notes
Curry Sauce Yield: 2 1/4 cupStir Fry Vegetables: Since the sauce is very concentrated with flavor, you can adjust the amount based on how many vegetables you stir fry. If cooking for 2, I like to stir fry just enough for one portion and save the sauce separately. Here are suggestions for vegetables:
zucchini
celery
snap peas
mushrooms (oyster, shiitake)
carrot
leeks, onion
bok choy
Protein: The nutrition is calculated based on a vegetarian dish, but you can absolutely add tofu, chicken, or shrimp. I love adding bite sized pieces of chicken tenders just before the vegetables.Gluten Free: As long as you use a gluten free tamari, this recipe is naturally gluten free. You can even add rice noodles, and it will still be gluten free.Nut Free: I use sun-butter (sunflower seed butter) in this recipe because I absolutely love the flavor. It's a product that I have on hand all the time, but if you need a substitution, go ahead and use peanut butter instead.Storage: Store the curry sauce separate from the vegetables. I highly recommend cooking the stir-fry fresh and portioning out just enough sauce to lightly coat the portion size you need. While you can store leftovers in the fridge for a couple of days, I would not recommend freezing.