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1
Spoon the thick coconut cream from the top of the unshaken can into a wok and place over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the cream separates — the oil rises and the solids begin to fry in it — so the fat is ready to carry the paste's aromatics rather than simply stewing them. The surface will appear greasy and broken, and a distinctly coconut-fried aroma will rise from the wok.
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2
Add the red curry paste to the separated cream and fry, pressing and folding the paste continuously into the fat, until the paste darkens by a shade, its raw sharpness gives way to a roasted, fragrant smell, and the fat bleeds red-orange at the pan's edge — so each spice in the paste blooms fully in the hot fat rather than steaming in liquid. This is where the dish lives or dies: under-fried paste will leave the curry raw and harsh; over-fried paste will turn bitter and lose its aromatic lift.
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3
Pour in the remaining coconut milk and bring to a simmer, then add the lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves so they have time to release their fragrance into the sauce before the beef goes in. For a quick curry, simmer 5 minutes before adding the beef; for a slow curry, add the cubed chuck or short rib now and simmer, partially covered, for 1 to 1.5 hours until the connective tissue has softened, the sauce is noticeably thicker and more clinging, and a cube of beef offers no resistance to gentle pressure.
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4
For the quick curry, add the thin-sliced sirloin or tenderloin for the final 10 minutes of the simmer, because thin, tender cuts need only enough heat to lose their raw colour before carry-over warmth in the sauce finishes them. The beef is done when it has lost all pink colour and is just firm to the eye — do not prolong the simmer, or the thin slices will tighten and toughen.
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5
Add the Thai eggplants and simmer until just tender but still holding their shape, so they absorb the curry's flavour without turning to pulp and muddying the sauce. They are ready when they yield to a spoon with slight resistance, not collapse.
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6
Season with fish sauce and palm sugar, adding the sugar sparingly, because beef's natural depth already makes the dish read richer and full sweetness would blunt the paste's heat and the fish sauce's edge. Taste: the curry should be savoury and aromatic, with the paste's heat cutting clearly through the beef's stronger flavour.
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7
Remove from heat, add the sliced chillies and Thai basil leaves, and fold through once so the basil wilts gently in the residual heat rather than cooking out its perfume and colour over a flame. The basil should be just collapsed but still vivid green when the dish is served.