Foodie culture has pushed aside convenience. When I was growing up, it was perfectly acceptable for Aunt Jemima to make your pancakes or for you to buy your parmesan freshly grated in a tub. Not only must we now do everything ourselves, we must also have the shiny equipment to execute it on. Making cookies and cakes by hand seems no longer possible as contemporary recipe writers automatically direct you to add things to your stand mixer. I could bemoan this for ages, but my real point is about convenience. Is it really so bad all of the time? Don’t we sometimes really want things that can be made in 30 minutes if it’s a Wednesday night and we forgot to menu plan on Sunday?

OF COURSE scratch pancakes are much better than Aunt Jemima’s, but I think there are some perfectly acceptable shortcuts you can take advantage of, thai curry paste being one of them. I have made my own paste by hand with a mortar and pestle. And believe me, as delicious and rewarding as it was, it’s not a Wednesday night kind of activity. Jarred pastes aren’t perfect—they can be a little muted and mild—but I think using them as the base of a homemade sauce makes you feel a lot better than buying a frozen curry or calling for takeout. All it takes is a few extra ingredients, and you’ve got yourself a damn good Thai curry. Perfect? Hardly, but who cares. It’s Wednesday night, and you’ve only got so much time until ANTM starts.

Thai Red Curry with Halibut
Adapted from Bon Appetit

Serves two generously.

3 large limes
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2/3 cup chopped shallots
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1 1/2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
1 clove of garlic, minced
1.5 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
1 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon of sugar, cane sugar if possible
10 to 12 ounces halibut fillets, cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil, or fresh Thai basil

**You could also add other chopped vegetables such as bamboo shoots, eggplant or green beans, as well as some minced Thai chillies if you wanted more heat.

Finely grate enough peel from 2 limes to measure 1 1/2 teaspoons. Squeeze enough juice from 2 limes to measure 2 tablespoons. Cut third lime into wedges.

Heat vegetable oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add chopped shallots, diced red bell pepper, minced ginger and minced garlic; sautè until shallots are tender and peppers soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in curry paste, coconut milk, fish sauce, sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons lime peel, and 2 tablespoons lime juice. Simmer gently, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle fish with salt and pepper. Add fish to curry sauce. Return to very gentle simmer and cook just until fish is opaque in centre, 5 to 6 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Gently stir in cilantro and basil; serve over jasmine rice with lime wedges.