Make Panang Curry Paste

1. Peel and roughly chop the garlic, shallots and galangal.

2. Rinse, dry and chop the cilantro. Include the stems.

3. Rinse and roughly chop the lemongrass.

4. Cut the dried chilies in half.

5. Combine the garlic, shallots, galangal, cilantro, lemongrass, chilies, lemon peel, shrimp paste, salt and pepper in a food processor or mortar.

6. Process or grind with the pestle until the mixture becomes a uniformly chunky paste.

Make the Panang Curry Dish

1. Slice the meat of your choice into strips or cubes.

2. Cook the meat in the vegetable oil until well browned and nearly cooked through.

3. Remove the meat from the pan.

4. Put 1/4 cup of coconut milk in the pan and bring it to a boil.

5. Add the 2 tbsp. of panang curry paste (store-bought or homemade) to the milk.

6. Return the meat to the pan and let it finish cooking.

7. Add another cup of coconut milk to the pan and stir.

8. Stir in the fish sauce and sugar.

9. Add the rest of the coconut milk. Let the sauce cook until it starts to thicken.

10. Add the lime leaves and basil.

11. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. This may involve increasing the amount of fish sauce or sugar, adding salt and pepper or mixing in more curry paste.

12. Serve with white rice.