A friend of mine said, "There is no perfect recipe. The good ones always evolve."
Willows Shrimp Curry is a perfect example.
At a library cast-off sale, I found an out-of-print "Taste of Aloha" cookbook from the Honolulu Junior League. It's a beautiful book with Pegge Hopper illustrations and throwback recipes like Punahou Carnival Malasadas, baked kumu from the old Maile Restaurant at the Kahala Hilton, or opakapaka from Hy's Steakhouse. Honolulu restaurants like Bagwell's and Michel's, circa 1980, that you went to for special occasions: prom, grandma's birthday, family reunions, and the occasional funeral.
I remember Willows Shrimp Curry as something fancy and special from my childhood, so I was looking forward to re-creating it at home. But one look at the recipe, and it was clear that some serious updates were in order. 6 tablespoons of butter, 9 tablespoons of curry powder and 1/2 gallon of coconut milk to feed 6 people? Perhaps 6 people the size of Rubeus Hagrid.
At a library cast-off sale, I found an out-of-print "Taste of Aloha" cookbook from the Honolulu Junior League. It's a beautiful book with Pegge Hopper illustrations and throwback recipes like Punahou Carnival Malasadas, baked kumu from the old Maile Restaurant at the Kahala Hilton, or opakapaka from Hy's Steakhouse. Honolulu restaurants like Bagwell's and Michel's, circa 1980, that you went to for special occasions: prom, grandma's birthday, family reunions, and the occasional funeral.
I remember Willows Shrimp Curry as something fancy and special from my childhood, so I was looking forward to re-creating it at home. But one look at the recipe, and it was clear that some serious updates were in order. 6 tablespoons of butter, 9 tablespoons of curry powder and 1/2 gallon of coconut milk to feed 6 people? Perhaps 6 people the size of Rubeus Hagrid.
General health and time-to-prep parameters also influenced the alterations. When you are trying to get a weekday dinner going, you simply don't have time to let something sit for a few hours nor do you desire to strain a sauce before you can use it.
I streamlined to 1 can of light coconut milk, 3T of plain butter (did not clarify it) and 4T of curry powder. It took about an hour and the end result was pretty good.
It's much thicker, creamier and definitely milder than a Japanese or Thai curry. It's the kind of curry that works best with traditional accessories. We dressed it up with honey-roasted peanuts, cranberries and dried (unsweetened) coconut. Chutney would have been good too, but we didn't have it. Definitely worth repeating.
Click here for what I came up with.
What restaurants do you remember? Eat Well. Be Well.
It's much thicker, creamier and definitely milder than a Japanese or Thai curry. It's the kind of curry that works best with traditional accessories. We dressed it up with honey-roasted peanuts, cranberries and dried (unsweetened) coconut. Chutney would have been good too, but we didn't have it. Definitely worth repeating.
Click here for what I came up with.
What restaurants do you remember? Eat Well. Be Well.
