RECIPE: Garage Sale Curry

As necessity is the mother of culinary innovation, I just MacGyvered a new curry for dinner and it is surprisingly tasty. I was craving the coconut curry sauce from last week's Lunar New Year party, but lacking some vital ingredients, I got creative with what I could find around the house (ok, really just around the kitchen). What I ended up with was a scrumptious and spicy pineapple coconut shrimp curry. Oddly, this pairs well with Orange Fanta, but a dry white wine would be nice as well.

2 tablespoons oil
3 large shallots, diced *
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon red chili flakes (optional, but good if you like spicy)
1 red bell pepper, seeded, ribbed and julienned
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded, ribbed and diced
1 20 ounce can pineapple chunks, drained *
1 14 ounce can coconut milk *
1-2 cups medium size, raw shrimp
1 lime, juiced and zested

* items that everyone should always have on hand, but so few people do.

1. In a stir-fry or other large pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil until shimmering over medium high heat. Add shallots and garlic and sauté until soft.
2. Add all but the last three ingredients and stir fry 3-4 minutes more before adding the coconut milk.
3. Bring to a boil and simmer 15 minutes to reduce.
4. While curry simmers, heat remaining tablespoon of oil in another pan over medium heat. Add shrimp and cook two minutes on each side, then add to the shrimp to the curry and remove from heat.
5. Finish sauce with lime juice, serve over rice noodles and garnish with zest, but not too much zest.