A lesson learned. A Thai recipe gained.

Learned something new yesterday, which shows you how dependent I've been on my rice cooker lately.
And a note about that: If you have children, go out and buy a rice cooker right this minute. Could anything be more parent-friendly? Pop rice and water in pot, switch to "on," walk away and never think about it again until the aroma of toasty warm rice fills the house. Then go fry and egg in garlic and olive oil and pour on top of hot rice. Voila, dinner. Extra nutrition points if you stir-fry some greens (spinach or arugula or chard) in the garlicky oil first before cracking in the eggs. Use plenty of olive oil, since mixed with the runny yolk, it is your sauce. Plus the garlic flavor will be more pronounced if you use a lot of oil. Remember fat carries flavor.
So, back to the lesson I learned: Don't try to boil more than 2 cups of rice at a time in a saucepan. Makes heavy rice, nice the fluffy kind I like. I was teaching a Thai cooking class (at Mountain Restaurant Supply in Newburgh, NY) and didn't have my trusty cooker with me. Students were very kind as I explained this "learning experience," re: rice, I just had. I was forced to serve up a pan of leaden rice for them to enjoy with their green coconut shrimp, which was so good, I am posting it here.
The best part about this recipe is that if you stock your kitchen right, you can have all these ingredients on hand all the times. Shrimp in the freezer (buying bulk in bags--from US waters only--is the most economical; defrost only what you need in cold salted water) and pantry filled with cans of coconut milk, curry paste, bamboo shoots, fish sauce, sugar, and rice. You need only a handful of fresh basil to make this in a snap (the whole recipe takes 15 minutes). Most people have basil in their garden, but frankly, you can make this without it. Or use fresh cilantro if you have that instead.

Shrimp with Green Coconut Curry
Serves 4

2 tablespoon coconut or vegetable oil
3 large shallots, coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 cans coconut milk
1 tablespoon green curry paste (more if you like it crazy spicy), I like Maesri brand in small green can
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 can sliced bamboo shoots
3 tablespoons fish sauce (nam pla)
3 tablespoons light-brown sugar
½ cup whole Thai basil leaves or regular basil leaves, thickly sliced
Steamed jasmine rice, for serving

1. In a large skillet or wok, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots, and garlic, and cook until they are golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a blender with ½ cup of coconut milk, and puree until smooth.
2. In the same skillet, heat another ½ cup of the coconut milk, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the green curry paste and fry the mixture for 2 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent it from burning. Add the shallot puree, the remaining remaining coconut milk, the shrimp, bamboo shoots, fish sauce, and sugar. Bring to a simmer, and reduce heat to low. Simmer until the shrimp is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the basil. Season with more fish sauce (for salt) or sugar, to balance flavors. Serve hot with steamed jasmine rice.