Prawn Thai green curry

I always have a jar of Thai green or red curry paste in the fridge and some coconut milk in the cupboard for when you need a quick and tasty meal fast.

Making a chicken or beef Thai curry means you have to remember to take meat out of the freezer in the morning, but prawns defrost really fast so are super easy to use if you haven’t managed to plan the meal in advance.

Chop up vegies like carrots, zucchini, broccoli and green beans (or whatever you have in the fridge), or grab a bag of frozen vegies and lightly steam them so they are still crunchy.

Make sure you have the equivalent of two cups of vegies per person.

Cook curry paste in a frying pan over medium heat, then add coconut milk. When sauce is hot, add defrosted prawns until cooked through. Stir in lightly steamed vegies for the last minute. Serve with rice or noodles and voila, a delicious meal in no time!

10-minute summer meal ideas

  1. Squid, capsicum and white beans
    Quickly pan-fry squid in rings or squares along with a diced red capsicum. Toss together with warmed cannellini beans, rocket, a good squeeze of lemon juice and olive oil.

  2. Super-quick paella
    Use a packet of ready-cooked risotto rice. Fry onion and garlic with smoked paprika and a pinch of rosemary. Add a little stock or water, rice, diced zucchini, green beans and flaked smoked fish or cooked prawns. Stir to combine and simmer for 5-10 minutes until warmed through. Toss through spinach leaves just before serving.

  3. Corn fritters
    Combine a can of corn kernels (or kernels cut from fresh corn) with egg, flour, chopped coriander, chopped green onions and a dash of sweet chilli sauce. Spoon into a hot pan to make fritters. Serve with smoked salmon and a salad.

  4. Steak with chickpea purée
    Whiz a can of drained chickpeas in the blender with a clove of garlic, a dash of olive oil and fresh parsley. Serve with a fillet steak cooked to your liking, green salad and tasty chutney.

  5. Quick prawn curry
    Toss peeled prawns in a pan with tandoori paste. Add light coconut cream, grated ginger and kaffir lime leaves, diced zucchini and cauliflower or broccoli. Simmer for 5 minutes. Toss in a generous handful of baby spinach. Serve with rice or naan bread.

  6. Tuscan tuna and bread salad
    Chop tomatoes, avocado and red onion in chunks. Toast some grainy bread and cut in squares. Combine in a bowl with salad greens, drained tuna, lemon juice and olive oil. Toss well and season with salt and chilli flakes or black pepper.

  7. Cheesy chicken tortilla stack
    Dice bbq chicken, green capsicum, tomatoes and chillies. Combine with light sour cream and mix well. Layer between tortillas in a baking dish. Top with grated cheese and grill until cheese is melted. Cut in triangles to serve.

  8. Spiced salmon with couscous
    Add lemon zest to couscous and cover with boiling water to cook. Coat salmon fillets with Cajun spice mix and pan-fry for 2 minutes on each side. Add cherry tomatoes, cucumber and rocket to couscous and serve salmon on top.