Spring Pea Green Curry with Black Cod and Strawberry – Channeling My Inner Spa Chef

I’ve always loved green curries, but until a recent visit to Al’s Place, I’d never thought of using fresh, sweet peas as the base. It was amazing, and after only a few bites I knew I'd steal this idea and make it my own. Sorry, Al.

Their version featured pickled strawberries, but I decided to try a different approach, and used diced, fresh berries instead. I didn’t use any palm sugar or coconut milk, so the sweetness they provided paired perfectly with the brightly seasoned sauce.

As I mentioned in the video, I used a jarred curry paste, Thai Kitchen Green Curry Paste, to be exact, and it works just fine. It contains green chili, garlic, lemongrass, galangal, salt, shallot, pepper, coriander, cumin, and kaffir lime, which is pretty much what you’d grind up to make a fresh green curry.

Next time I’ll make the paste from scratch just to see how much better it is, but I have to admit, the trade-off in time and effort is pretty attractive. Speaking of attractive, this lovely bowl of spring goodness sure would look good on your table, so I hope you give this spring pea green curry a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 appetizer-sized portions:

1 yellow onion, diced

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

3 tablespoons green curry paste, plus more to taste

2 cups chicken broth

1 pound trimmed sugar snap peas, snow peas, or English peas

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 pound boneless black cod (aka butterfish or sablefish), but into eight 2-oz pieces, skin scored 1/8^th inch deep

4 tablespoons diced strawberry

2 teaspoons mint chiffonade