Chicken Sweet Potato Curry

Copyright 2006 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:

1 lb. chicken breast, boneless and skinless, cut into cubes
1 sweet potato (8 oz.), rough dices
1 russet potato (8 oz.), rough dices
3 carrots, large dices
1/2 sweet onion, diced
2 T curry powder
2 T cilantro, minced*
2 T cornstarch
1 T soy sauce
1 14-oz can low-sodium chicken broth
1 clove garlic, sliced thinly
salt and pepper
2 T extra virgin olive oil

* This is optional. Some people have a strong reaction to cilantro, but I love the freshness it brings to the dish. You can replace with another fresh herb that'll add flavor (such as basil) and a nice green color.

Season chicken breast with salt, pepper and one tablespoon of oil and set aside. In large saucepan or dutch oven, warm the remaining olive oil over medium high heat and saute onion and garlic for about a minute. Add chicken and brown both sides. Add curry powder to warm spice and add soy sauce and then broth. Add carrots and bring to a boil, then set to simmer for about 10 minutes. Add potatoes (both sweet and russet) and cook until fork tender (about 20 minutes).

In small bowl, mix cornstarch with some water to create a slurry to thicken the curry. Turn up the heat to high and slowly pour in cornstarch mixture until thicken to your taste. Season with salt to taste. Remove pot from heat and mix in cilantro.

Makes 4 to 6 servings. Serve with jasmine steamed rice.

Serve with a glass of Riesling.

TIPS: The chicken tends to dry out as the potatoes are cooking to be tender. I personally don't mind the chicken being a bit dry since you have all that curry to soak it in. But if you want your chicken more tender, remove the chicken pieces from the pot after you brown them and then return them to the pot about 5 minutes before potatoes are ready.

SPICE of LIFE: Curry is a great spice and comes in a variety of degrees of heat, from red to green to yellow (or golden). You can find a nice variety from the gourmet spice store, but most grocery stores will stock the basic yellow or golden type of curry. This is a medium grade that's widely used in Hawaii and Japan.