Ingredients:

  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
     1/2         pound  boneless chicken breast
     1/2         pound  mixed vegetables -- see note below)
  4              small  red chili peppers
     1/2         stalk  fresh lemon grass
  2                     kaffir lime leaves
  2          teaspoons  oil
     1/2           cup  coconut milk
     1/2      teaspoon  salt
  2 1/2      teaspoons  fish sauce -- based on personal
                        -- ta
  12 1/2                basil leaves
  1                cup  chopped cabbage

Preparation:

Thinly cut chicken into 2-inch strips. (If doing vegetable version, cut vegetables into thin strips.) Grind together red chili peppers, lemon grass, and kaffir lime leaves in a food processor or pound in a mortar. Heat oil to medium-high and saute pepper mixture for 3 minutes. Stir in coconut milk and cook for 2 minutes. Add chicken (or vegetables) and cook for 5 minutes or until cooked (same time for veggies). Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in fish sauce (if using), salt, and basil. Serve on a bed of chopped cabbage. Note: For mixed vegetables, choose from among bell peppers, string beans, water chestnuts, tomatoes (small cherry tomatoes are best), bamboo shoots, miniature corn, asparagus, cucumbers, zucchini, Japanese eggplant, and mushrooms. I particularly like string beans or asparagus, a few cherry tomatoes, shredded (rather than sliced) bamboo shoots, miniature corn, and some straw mushrooms or slender (Japanese) eggplant.

Nutritional Information:

564 Calories (kcal); 41g Total Fat; (60% calories from fat); 11g Protein; 49g Carbohydrate; 2mg Cholesterol; 1610mg Sodium