sunshine curry with cilantro-lime rice

summer in a bowl

When my husband, George, and I first moved to the Monterey area, we lived in Carmel-by-the-Sea for two years. We adored every minute of it — the cobblestone streets, the secret passageways and courtyards, walking on the beach nearly every day.

My favorite part of living in the village was the walkability. Forgot cilantro for that recipe? Two-block walk to the market. Not in the mood to cook tonight? A quick jaunt up the hill to our fave restaurant, Stationaery. Need a quick dopamine hit? Time to stroll on over to Paloosh to buy a new sweater!

But my favorite thing of all, the thing that made me feel like the absolute stereotype of a smug Californian? Walking to the farmers’ market.

I mean is there anything more show off-y than being able to walk from your home to the farmers’ market carrying your giant basket full of kale and dahlias in one hand, fresh baguette tucked under the other arm?!

No, there is nothing. And man, it felt good.

I became a full-fledged farmers’ market snob. “What’s for dinner tonight?” my husband would ask. “Oh, I’m not sure yet dear, I just need to see what looks good at the market today,” I would drawl.

But childrearing times called for childrearing measures and POOF, months after Mattis was born, we looked around and suddenly we lived in the country! With land for our growing gang of beasts to roam, yes, but with no farmers’ markets in sight.

We’re currently renovating our house in Carmel Valley, so we’ve been renting a place back down in farmers’ market country and I’ve been taking full advantage. I always share seasonal recipes here, but I daresay this summer has been my best seasonal work yet, because I am drawing direct influence from the changing offerings at the farmers’ markets around the Monterey peninsula.

This week’s recipe is an ode to late summer. Typically I reserve curries for the winter months, but I couldn’t resist the allure of turning all of the quick-cooking veggies I got at the market this week into a super speedy (minus the chopping, there is a bit of chopping to be done), flavorful summer curry.

The veggies soak up the creamy, zesty curry broth. Add chicken or tofu if you want, or leave it out for a veggie feast. If you can find it, a little chili crisp on top is such a fun addition.

This week’s recipe calls for yellow curry paste, which can be tricky to find, which is against the WTC by-laws. Red or green curry paste can absolutely be swapped in here — it’ll be equally delicious, I just wanted to switch things up since we’ve used red curry paste a few times here (like in the thai chicken chop and peanut vegetable curry).

There are tons of different curry pastes out there, each getting its distinct color from its main ingredients. Turmeric is a main ingredient in yellow curry paste, giving us that sunshine-y color!

Your most reliable bet for finding yellow curry paste is Whole Foods, World Market, or Amazon. If you find it at another major grocer, let us know!

Chili crisp (which is an optional drizzle on top) is easy to find at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, or Amazon.

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sunshine curry with cilantro-lime rice

Serves 4 to 6

Cook time: ~40 minutes