Thai Chicken and Winter Melon Curry, 'Kaeng Kua Phak Gai'

Clean chicken, cut into 1 inch pieces, mix with 1 tsp salt and fry until dry. Peel melon, remove seeds and cut into 1 inch chunks. Mix coconut cream powder with 3 cups warm water, stir well. Put 1 cup coconut cream in frying pan and heat. When oil begins to appear on the surface, add the kaeng kua curry paste, then add the chicken and cook. Spoon into a pot, add the remaining coconut milk and the melon and heat. Separately combine tamarind concentrate with 2 tablespoons warm water, mix well. When the melon is done, taste and season with tamarind juice, palm sugar, and fish sauce. Stir and serve withjasmine rice.

*Winter melon is also known as Christmas melon, wax gourd, or ash gourd. The pumpkin-like vine has thick, furrowed stems. The fruits range from oblong to cylindrical and reach 16 inches in length. The mature fruit has a thick layer of white wax (ton kwa). Other names: Tougan (Japanese); doongua, cham kwa, tung gwa, mo kwa, fa kwa (Chinese); tankoy, kundol (Filipino); petha, kaddu (Indian). You may substitute your favorite local gourd for this dish.