Thai Curry Secrets?

[fenderchamp]

I was going broke supporting my local Thai restaurant and decided to try my own curries!

I could only find two brand of curry paste locally and both small batch organic; not traditional brands. Not bad but a bit on the bland side so far. Says 2 tablespoons per can of coconut milk but that don't cut it so far! I use chili oil for fire so mostly about increasing basic flavor.

I'm sure there's someone here who has an idea of how to juice up the basics. I mean is there like certain seperate ingredients I can buy separately and add to give it a bit more of a flavor kick?

Any favorite curry paste brands?

I must say for other lazy bachelors like myself I always thought way too complicated but my gosh it's easy! Steam/blanche some veggies and such; open can of coconut milk; add paste then veggies and simmer! Rice cooker does the rice! Takes 15 minutes to prep and I get 3 dinners out a batch! I'm hooked!

I made some red thai curry paste a few months ago that was acceptable, I happened to have some whole spices around and just kind of searched for a few recipes. I didn't have any lemongrass or kaffir lime but it was still okey. I don't remember exactly what went into it but it was fine. Just search the internet. I didn't use a mortar, simply a blender.

 

[bottlenecker]

Any favorite curry paste brands?

I don't remember the brands, but they are from the international aisle. Don't buy brands used/created by woowoo bloggers who claim to "elevate" something they can't get the basics of right in the first place. There's a lot more to the flavor than heat, as you've figured out. My wife does some ok, but nothing that could replace our favorite thai/lao/vietnamese joints.

 

[Deeve]

In addition to the paste, remember the adjacent tones, like coconut Cream (mentioned above) and lemon grass, esp for the thai-influenced curries.

 

[oldunc]

Get a book- back in the days when I was buying a lot of cookbooks, it was just Jennifer Brennan's "Original Thai Cookbook", an excellent volume designed for American home kitchens, but there are a bunch of them now. I tend to avoid premixed spice blends in favor of spicing dishes individually; the blends are seldom ideal, and tend generally to emphasize cheap ingredients and include garbage like dehydrated onion. It takes some doing to equip your kitchen for Thai, but specialized ingredients such as lemon grass and galingale have become much more available since I was doing it. If you have a Chinatown nearby it's a good place to start (unless you have a Thai town, of course). Amazon can supply a lot of stuff; there are probably specialized online sellers by now, but I don't know them; haven't cooked Thai in quite a while. Lemon grass is pretty easy to grow; I've successfully rooted stalks from the produce store.
With millions of people cooking for thousands of years, there are few real "secrets" to be had, but it takes some work to digest the available information.

 

[clydethecat]

Let Youtube be your friend for this.

Any ingredients you can't get locally you can probably find at specialty sites online, or even Amazon.

 

[notmyusualuserid]

Thai curries are supposed to be hot!

Curry paste is easy to make, this one's red:
15g dried red chillies, mild
10g dried red chillies, hot
1/2tsp (half tsp) white peppercorns
1 stalk lemon grass, the bottom part, julienned
15g chopped galangal
4 chopped coriander (cilantro) root
kaffir lime zest, to taste
6 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
75g banana shallots, chopped
2tsp shrimp paste

Throw it all in a large measuring jug and attack it with an immersion blender until it's a smooth paste

If you must have commercially made curry paste - Mae Ploy, I won't judge you.

 

[srvy]

This site has Thai recipes with easy-to-find ingredients in the Asian section of most supermarkets. My wife who is Filipina usually has either Purfina or Three Crabs fish sauce on hand. She also was recommended Mae Ploy curry paste by her Thai friend she works with. They always make a trip to the China Markets in our hometown every couple of weeks.

Red Thai Curry Recipe

This 30 MINUTE Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables is wonderfully coconut creamy, bursting with layers of flavor, incredibly easy and all made in one pot! Definitely a new favorite at our house and better than any restaurant!

carlsbadcravings.com

 

[BigDaddyLH]

Well i do sometimes, it makes rice yellowish or something, i am not big on it though.

Ah, I see the problem. Curry is not something that makes rice yellowish. Curry is a way of looking at life, a discipline, a dimension of reality outside of time and space.

And yes, it will stain your wooden spoons yellow.

 

[Mowgli]

Use coconut cream rather than coconut milk, and use a good fish sauce. Real lime leaves elevate it to another level. I like to use dark brown sugar rather than palm sugar.

One way to obtain Coconut Cream from Coconut Milk is to place a can of Coconut Milk in the fridge for 24 hours. Then scoop out the congealed cream from the can.

It worked well for me when I fixed some Tom Kha Gai (Thai Coconut soup) several months ago.

 

[tomkatf]

I like this stuff... order on Amazon...

 

[G&Lplayer]

I have found the canned curry paste to be the best since it is single use, jars lose flavor too fast. We grow Thai dragon peppers, end of the season we freeze a gallon bag of them and use them is all sorts of dishes. Years ago my wife found a little Kaffir lime tree at a Chinese market, it lives happily indoors most of the year. As mentioned above galanga and lemongrass is important. Curry requires some basic ingredients, but it’s not a hard dish. The best part is customizing to your tastes.

 

[bowman]

I’m going to have to investigate some simple Thai cooking to see if I can do it. A small Thai place opened up on my street about a year ago, and I’m becoming a convert. I’m a decent cook, but my Asian repertoire is almost nonexistent. Thai food that I’ve had is very flavorful but is refined at the same time. Good stuff.

 

[OaklandA]

The Maesri brand that comes in little cans is the best I've come across. Very good. May only be able to find it at an asian market

 

[oregomike]

I was going broke supporting my local Thai restaurant and decided to try my own curries!

I could only find two brand of curry paste locally and both small batch organic; not traditional brands. Not bad but a bit on the bland side so far. Says 2 tablespoons per can of coconut milk but that don't cut it so far! I use chili oil for fire so mostly about increasing basic flavor.

I'm sure there's someone here who has an idea of how to juice up the basics. I mean is there like certain seperate ingredients I can buy separately and add to give it a bit more of a flavor kick?

Any favorite curry paste brands?

I must say for other lazy bachelors like myself I always thought way too complicated but my gosh it's easy! Steam/blanche some veggies and such; open can of coconut milk; add paste then veggies and simmer! Rice cooker does the rice! Takes 15 minutes to prep and I get 3 dinners out a batch! I'm hooked!

The secret I’ve found (or one of them) is fish sauce. Don’t need a lot, but it definitely elevates the dish closer to what I’ve had at good Thai places.

 

[Telegazer]

I think folks have the right idea (as if I was an expert).

And thank goodness that kaffir lime leaves + fresh lemongrass, coconut cream, and quality fish sauce won't break the bank, because they often seem to make or break what's missing from a good pot of green curry when made at home. And yeah, the gentle buzz of proper galangal instead of zingy common ginger shouldn't be missed, when available.

 

[telemnemonics]

I NEVER use curry paste!
Why?
Well lots of reasons but a huge one is that the cumin in curry paste should go in the hot oil early as in first like with the onions you need to brown to get the smoky sweet.
Curry that has nothing browned in oil is missing something.
Back to the order of browning and cooking, the garlic in curry paste really should go in much later, and if browned at all should only be lightly browned.
The turmeric goes in after the cumin, onions and chopped fresh ginger.
Similarly chili flakes or whole chilis should go in later than the onions ginger and cumin, maybe same time as garlic unless using fresh whole chilis.
Then a huge huge huge thing is the garlic should be freshly chopped or crushed, not stored on a shelf for days or weeks.
Buying curry paste that is made daily an fresh, is a good option, but you still end up over cooking one part or under cooking another.
Basic Thai and Indian gastronomy or chemistry says cumin and other spices need to be heated in oil to activate.
I sometimes use whole cumin seed which gives a flavor experience ground cumin cannot duplicate, but you can over time taste methods and choose your favorites.

Last I find I like to use more of one and less of another rather than be stuck with the factory blend, with a major factor being more garlic that you can really put into premade curry paste.
Unless it is fresh made by you that day.

Not really sure why some cook with the premade blend, aside from convenience.
Maybe the tradition is also from cooking with one pot in open air markets where it is harder to sequence the ingredients.
Certainly helps foreign cooks get close, but the most authentic and controlled results come putting in your own ingredients separately.
I do also use some curry powder which is some of the dry spices in curry paste but should not have garlic unless commercial for foreigners!

A little tomato sauce near the end as the spices onion and garlic are simmering and the heat is lowered, then I add other stuff like usually cooked chicken and finally coconut milk.
Sometimes I cook the chicken in the oil with the onions and cumin, then add the rest of the ingredients in the same basic order.
Salt of course, and a little chicken stock paste is optional.

A key is to figure out what combo of spices you like best and get a feel for how they combine and how heating and browning changes the flavors.
Forget the 30 minute ideal and get down to chopping!

 

[oregomike]

I think folks have the right idea (as if I was an expert).

And thank goodness that kaffir lime leaves + fresh lemongrass, coconut cream, and quality fish sauce won't break the bank, because they often seem to make or break what's missing from a good pot of green curry when made at home. And yeah, the gentle buzz of proper galangal instead of zingy common ginger shouldn't be missed, when available.

Lime leaves was what I was forgetting!

 

[notmyusualuserid]

I NEVER use curry paste!
Why?
Well lots of reasons but a huge one is that the cumin in curry paste should go in the hot oil early as in first like with the onions you need to brown to get the smoky sweet.
Curry that has nothing browned in oil is missing something.
Back to the order of browning and cooking, the garlic in curry paste really should go in much later, and if browned at all should only be lightly browned.
The turmeric goes in after the cumin, onions and chopped fresh ginger.
Similarly chili flakes or whole chilis should go in later than the onions ginger and cumin, maybe same time as garlic unless using fresh whole chilis.
Then a huge huge huge thing is the garlic should be freshly chopped or crushed, not stored on a shelf for days or weeks.
Buying curry paste that is made daily an fresh, is a good option, but you still end up over cooking one part or under cooking another.
Basic Thai and Indian gastronomy or chemistry says cumin and other spices need to be heated in oil to activate.
I sometimes use whole cumin seed which gives a flavor experience ground cumin cannot duplicate, but you can over time taste methods and choose your favorites.

Last I find I like to use more of one and less of another rather than be stuck with the factory blend, with a major factor being more garlic that you can really put into premade curry paste.
Unless it is fresh made by you that day.

Not really sure why some cook with the premade blend, aside from convenience.
Maybe the tradition is also from cooking with one pot in open air markets where it is harder to sequence the ingredients.
Certainly helps foreign cooks get close, but the most authentic and controlled results come putting in your own ingredients separately.
I do also use some curry powder which is some of the dry spices in curry paste but should not have garlic unless commercial for foreigners!

A little tomato sauce near the end as the spices onion and garlic are simmering and the heat is lowered, then I add other stuff like usually cooked chicken and finally coconut milk.
Sometimes I cook the chicken in the oil with the onions and cumin, then add the rest of the ingredients in the same basic order.
Salt of course, and a little chicken stock paste is optional.

A key is to figure out what combo of spices you like best and get a feel for how they combine and how heating and browning changes the flavors.
Forget the 30 minute ideal and get down to chopping!

Thai curries are all made with a paste, the traditional way was to pummel away at the ingredients in a with a pestle and mortar. I don't have a single Thai curry recipe that doesn't use it, and the recipe I posted above was given to me by Prahnee who made the best Thai food.

Unlike Indian curries, Thai curries are stir-fried. Long cooking destroys the delicate balance of flavours. Hot oil, fry paste until it's aromatic. Add the other ingredients.

 

[johnny k]

Ah, I see the problem. Curry is not something that makes rice yellowish. Curry is a way of looking at life, a discipline, a dimension of reality outside of time and space.

And yes, it will stain your wooden spoons yellow.

I am not that far out in the 70's to enjoy curry !

 

[Monoprice99]

I like the Indian dishes for Curry cuisine. Another option for seasoning that yellows rice is Saffron.