One of my greatest pleasures is walking into a supermarket, picking up a few ingredients and coming home to create an unplanned meal. Recently, when my supermarket had a special on shrimp and some beautiful salmon fillets behind the seafood counter, I decided to create an impromptu meal.

I could have taken the classic route, poaching the salmon and topping it with a shrimp sauce of some sort, but I stumbled upon some great convenience products in the Oriental foods section and decided to make a Thai meal.

A can of coconut milk and a jar of red curry paste turned my seafood into a delicious Thai curry. While I used salmon when testing the recipe, catfish or another mild-flavored fish also could be used. The curry was served over boiled Jasmine rice, and dinner was served.

• 1 14-ounce can coconut milk 
• 1 to 2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste (to taste)
• 1 pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp
• 1 8-ounce boneless, skinless salmon fillet, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 10-ounce package ready-to-use baby spinach
• Chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
• Hot, cooked Jasmine or Basmati rice
  

Place 2 tablespoons of coconut milk in a large skillet or Dutch oven with the Thai red curry paste over medium-high heat. Whisk until well combined, then stir in the shrimp and salmon. Sauté briefly, then add the remaining coconut milk and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes, until seafood is cooked.

Remove seafood from coconut milk mixture using a slotted spoon and set aside. Add spinach to the pan, cover and simmer until the spinach is wilted. Return the seafood to the pot and serve with the cooked rice.

Makes 4 servings.