About this component
The aromatic engine of Thai green curry — a vivid pounded paste of green chiles, lemongrass, galangal and makrut. Making it fresh is the difference between a good curry and a memorable one.
Component facts
- Yield
- About 3/4 cup (180 ml)
- Prep
- 30 minutes
- Heat
- Hot
Development draft. This is an untested development recipe from the cookbook project. It has not been kitchen-tested, and the quantities and timings are the author’s working draft rather than a verified result.
Ingredients
- 12–15 green bird's eye chiles
- 3 stalks lemongrass, tender part, sliced
- 1 in (2.5 cm) galangal, sliced
- 4 makrut lime leaves, deveined
- 1 tbsp (6 g) coriander roots or stems, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic
- 3 shallots
- 1 tsp (2 g) toasted coriander seed
- 1/2 tsp (1 g) toasted cumin seed
- 1 tsp (5 g) shrimp paste
- 1 tsp (5 g) salt
Method
- Toast coriander and cumin seeds; grind to a powder.
- Pound the fibrous aromatics — lemongrass, galangal, makrut, coriander root — with salt until fine.
- Add chiles, garlic and shallots; pound to a paste.
- Work in the ground spices and shrimp paste until smooth and glossy.
- Use immediately or store; the color is brightest when fresh.
Notes from the book
- Balancing
- Salt and shrimp paste carry the savory base; keep pounding until no fibers remain for the smoothest curry.
- Substitutions
- Food processor with a little oil as a shortcut; omit shrimp paste and add extra salt + a little miso for a lighter version.
- Storage and food safety
- Refrigerate up to 1 week or freeze in portions up to 3 months. Keep surface filmed with oil.
Pairs with in this book
Green curry variations with fish or vegetables.
The Complete Edition
Thai Green Curry Paste sits in the foundations
The book carries this component alongside the other twenty-three, the twenty-seven pantry studies, and the Thailand chapter it belongs to.
In review with Amazon KDP
Both editions have been submitted to Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing and are currently in review. Submitted prices are $9.99 for the kindle edition and $49.99 for the paperback. Neither is on sale yet, and prices are as submitted rather than final.