Spicy Peanut Coconut Curry with Cucumbers and Tomatoes

Talk about confusion. I'm making a coconut peanut curry. Ironically, neither coconuts nor peanuts are nuts, but the do taste delicious when prepared with Asian spices, onions, garlic and ginger, cilantro giving the entire kitchen a  delightful aroma.  Serve with cold cucumbers, tomatoes, which are fruits not vegetables.  I love making this because of the contrasts and complexities.  The cool crispness of the fruits and vegetables,  adorned with the warm sweet, spicy curry intermingled with the aromatic rice and finished with tingling citrus, is heavenly.  The first mouthful is a true "Mouthgasm". This can be served over noodles or rice,  its the curry that makes the dish.  If using noodles,  I  suggest Thai rice flat noodles, soaked in water and lightly pan fried till soft.  If you  decide to go  with rice, use basmati or jasmine steamed in a  rice cooker.  For the  fruits and vegetables, get them as  fresh  as possible,  crispness is so  key to  this  dish.  The  dish  is defiantly Asian  influenced, but I've never had it in my travels there,  I made  this  dish as  one of  those "use  up  what  I  have  in the  cupboard" and I just  happened  to have  peanut butter, coconut milk, noodles and spices.  The  fruits and vegetables I  had  in the  fridge, and the only thing  missing  was  company.  It  was  so good I was  calling  people to  make yummy noises on their voice mail , friends, not random people. The  next  day  I made  it again. 

Fruits and Vegetables 

 1 or 2 plum tomatoes cut into slices

1 cucumber peeled and sliced

1/4 cup bean sprouts

1 or 2 scallions  cut length wise

3 or 4 small green chili peppers

1 lime cut into wedges

small  bunch of  fresh  basil

For curry  sauce

4 cloves garlic minced

2 tsp ginger minced

3 yellow onions chopped

Saute  till soft  then  add

2 cans  coconut milk

1/2 cup peanut butter ( unsweetened if possible) 

1 cup water or vegetable stock

Stir until smooth then add

1 bunch cilantro

2  tsp each coriander, cumin, nutmeg , turmeric, red chili powder 

juice of one lime

4 tbsp soy sauce

salt

black pepper

At this point add more chili powder or chili oil to taste.

Let  this  simmer over  slow heat  stirring  occasionally  and the  room  will fill  with a  heavenly  aroma.  At this  point  start  your  rice  cooker  or  get  noodles soaking.  

The  sauce should  be  ready by the  time  the rice  is  done.  Put a layer  of  rice  in the  bowl, then fruits and veggies, ladle curry over and garnish with basil and a squeeze of lime and  crushed  peanuts.