Enhanced Thai Green Curry

Steps

1. Enhance the store-bought curry paste: Finely julienne some Thai basil leaves and pound them into a paste. Add extra kaffir lime (kachai) and pound it into the paste as well. Finally, add fermented shrimp paste (kapit) to boost umami, then pound everything together.
2. Bring a portion of coconut milk to a full boil.
3. Add the enhanced curry paste to the boiling coconut milk and sauté for a few minutes, stirring constantly so it doesn't stick or burn. Continue cooking until the coconut oil starts to separate from the paste and floats to the top (about one minute).
4. Stir in the bite-sized chicken thigh pieces.
5. Add the rest of the coconut milk and the chicken stock.
6. Season the curry sauce with palm sugar and fish sauce, ensuring the seasoning is added early so the chicken can absorb it as it cooks.
7. Add the makrut lime leaves (twisted to bruise) and tear them into chunks, discarding the center stem.
8. Let the mixture simmer for about 10 minutes or until the chicken is fork tender.
9. Taste the sauce after the chicken has cooked to determine if more curry paste is needed. If it lacks flavor or spice, sauté additional raw curry paste in neutral oil first, then dissolve it with a little coconut milk/stock/water before pouring it into the curry.
10. Add the Thai eggplant pieces and stir them into the curry for about one minute, ensuring they are pushed down so they cook evenly.
11. Once the exterior of the eggplant is cooked (about 2-3 minutes total), turn off the heat.
12. Stir in the red and orange peppers to let the residual heat gently cook them while keeping them crisp.
13. Finish by stirring in the Thai basil, allowing it to wilt from the residual heat.
14. Before serving, taste and adjust the seasoning with more fish sauce as needed.