I love Thai curries specially yellow one, this tastes sweet and spicy at the same time and I love eating it with Jasmine Rice

Ramsha Baig

Thai curries are famous for the sublime aromatic flavours balancing sweet, tart, savoury and spiciness. Thai Yellow Curry is one such amazing example, with its wealthy yellow coloration and a heady mixture of herbs and spices on this crafted from scratch Yellow Curry Paste. You can also try my Thai Red Curry Also you can make it with Tofu.

Thai Yellow Curry

There are many things to like about Thai meals, however for me, the jewel inside the crown are the curries. i like that elusive combination of fresh aromatic herbs and spices with the complexity you get from the use of umami loaded seasonings consisting of fish sauce and shrimp paste. the colours, meanwhile, make up a rainbow of deliciousness! striking Thai red Curry, vibrant inexperienced Curry, caramel colored Massaman Curry.

And now, the today’s addition to my Thai recipe series – this stunning splash of sunshine inside the shape of Thai Yellow Curry!

What’s Thai Yellow Curry

There are a few types of what’s taken into consideration “yellow curry” in Thai cuisine. they range in spiciness and sauce richness, with a few made with and others made with out coconut cream. the one factor they all have in common is that the sauce is made with a very good quantity of sparkling turmeric which gives the Yellow Curry that beautiful heat golden shade.

The Yellow Curry I’m sharing today is the kind that is maximum not unusual outdoor of Thailand which has a reasonably wealthy sauce made with coconut cream. The spice stage varies from mild (2 sparkling chillies) to pretty spicy (4 chillies).

What Thai Yellow Paste Tastes Like

The sauce is savoury, sweet and fragrant with Thai aromatics including lemongrass, turmeric, garlic, shallots and chilli. it can be as slight as you need or quite highly spiced – I enjoy it both approaches.

It’s no longer as tangy as different Thai curries, with the obligatory squirt of fresh lime juice you see in different Thai curries quite absent on this one.

It’s got layers upon layers of flavours which means that sure, there are quite a few substances – and it’s really worth it! in contrast to different Thai curries, I actually don’t think any save bought curry paste comes anywhere near made from scratch (sorry men!).

Thai Yellow Curry Paste. I’ve recently discovered that a stick blender is the easiest way to make curry pastes!

What you need to make Thai Yellow Curry Paste

There are pretty some ingredients concerned in making a yellow curry from scratch in case you need a clearly true result. i encourage you to strive making this at least as soon as – the taste is incomparable to canned pastes! and actually, I sincerely can’t recommend any shop offered yellow curry paste.

Dried Red Chillis

Dried red chillis have a rounded flavour compared to fresh chillies and have a mellower heat. That said, it’s a good idea to taste the chillies to gauge the spiceiness and adjust accordingly. (Best to nibble once soaked)

If you don’t have dried chilli you can use more fresh chillis instead.

1. The dried chillis come whole with seeds inside them.
2. Roughly chop – this makes it easier to rehydrate, blitz into a paste, and also this loosens the seeds which are spicy. Pick up the chillis only, leaving behind the seeds, and put them in a bowl.
3. Cover with boiling water and leave for 30 minutes to rehydrate.
4. Strain chillis and reserve the soaking liquid – we are going to use some of it for the curry paste.

Fresh Chicken Eye Chillis or Thai Chillis

These deliver a vibrant and clean taste of chilli by means of comparison, as well as the real kick!

1 or 2 chillies will supply this curry a moderate to medium degree heat. Use 4 chillis for pretty highly spiced however not blow-your-head-off. in case you’re involved, you can go away them out!

Lemongrass

Fragrant, with a gentle citrus taste, lemongrass is a quintessential South-East Asian flavour. To prepare, cut and discard the top reedy part off – we only want the bottom 10 – 12cm / 4 – 5″. Peel the reedy green shell to reveal the softer white part on the bottom half of the lemongrass.

Substitute: 2 tablespoons of lemongrass paste.

Galangal

This is a plant root used in South-East Asian cooking that appears much like ginger. It additionally tastes like ginger however is more citrusy and a little pine-y. It’s clearly quite tough to reduce so take care whilst slicing it! Peel it like ginger, either with a sharp aspect teaspoon or (cautiously!) with a small knife.

This wishes to be finely grated as it’s so hard, it doesn’t blend right into a easy paste, you end up with little gritty bits. i use my microplane, one in all my favored kitchen gear – extra records here.

Find galangal at Asian stores, and in some large grocery stores in Australia (Harris Farm and some Woolworths sell it).

Substitute: Use the same amount of ginger + the zest of 1 lime (or lemon).

Fresh Turmeric

Turmeric is what offers this curry its crucial golden shade, and there’s no yellow curry without it! fresh turmeric is a root that appears a piece like ginger at the outside but is vibrant orange at the inside.

The flavor is moderate, earthy and barely sour eaten by means of itself. Its number one use in cooking is for healthfulness and for color.

Prepare it like ginger – peel the skin (scrape the use of teaspoon or reduce off with a small knife), then grate.

Turmeric stains fiercely once grated! Use gloves while coping with it, and grate it onto a ceramic or metallic plate or bowl. (And sure, the observant amongst you will word that once more, I failed on the gloves front until I commenced grating it!).

Substitute: 1.5 tsp dried turmeric powder, but it won’t be quite the same so I really urge you to use fresh if you can!

Shrimp Paste in Bean Oil

I take advantage of Por Kwan Shrimp Paste in Bean Oil, the most famous Thai shrimp paste sold at Asian grocery stores here in Australia. at the same time as many conventional recipes use regular shrimp (belacan, in blocks, looks like this) that is made with simply fermented shrimp, Shrimp Paste sold in jars in which other flavouring had been delivered (mainly oil, a bit of garlic, and soy sauce powder) goes a long way to making a definitely eating place nice curry paste.

This is particularly so when using a blender in preference to mortar and pestle as when dried chillies are ground by hand the traditional, the herbal oils are extracted. So using a shrimp paste in oil makes up for this.

Por Kwan is the emblem i use, pictured under, that’s offered at Asian stores.

Best alternatives to Thai Shrimp Paste with Bean Oil:

1. Belacan dried shrimp paste which is even sold at Woolworths and Coles in Australia these days. The result is very close to using Thai Shrimp Paste with Bean Oil!
2. Other Thai Shrimp Pastes in Oil – Only Thai shrimp pastes. We tried some other shrimp paste brands sold at Woolworths (made in Vietnam and Cambodia) and while still tasty, they brought a different flavour to the dish.

If you don’t have access to Thai shrimp paste or belacan, I’m afraid I’d suggest giving this recipe a miss because I can’t guarantee the outcome will be successful!

Other Ingredients

Garlic – Yes, 8 cloves! It sounds like a lot but the paste will be fried off and the curry simmered for a good 15 – 20 minutes. The garlic will not at all be obvious in the final dish but mellows to become just another instrument playing in this flavour orchestra.

Spices – Coriander, curmin, cardamom, fenugreek powder and white pepper. Our spice selection for this yellow curry which reflects the Indian influence on Yellow Curry. Massaman Curry is another such example of a Thai Curry with Subcontinental influences.

We go a little heavier on the spices for yellow curry compared to red or green curries, which are driven more by their heavy chilli content than spices. Of these spices, fenugreek might be the hardest to find. If you do not have it, leave it out.

What goes in Thai Yellow Curry

Once you’ve prepared the ingredients, it’s as simple as blitzing!

TIP: Use a stick blender. plenty extra powerful than blenders, Nutribullets and mini meals processors that you need to scrape down repeatedly to blitz thoroughly. not to mention less complicated to clean!

Once we’ve made the curry paste, we cook dinner it on the stove for a few minutes on a medium heat. The motive of this step is to dry out the moist paste, toasting the herbs and spices to intensify the flavor.

Yellow curry paste carried out – now it’s onto the curry. You’ll be happy to hear it’s a easy plonk-and-simmer process!

For this curry, I chose prawns (shrimp) because seafood is a popular choice in yellow curries. Chicken and fish are also other favourites for yellow curry which you can use instead. I’ve included directions for both these in the recipe notes.

• Prawns (shrimp) – I like to use medium prawns as small prawns quick so quickly they don’t have time to absorb some of the sauce flavour, and large ones are more difficult to serve / eat.Use fresh if you can, and keep the tail on. Otherwise frozen thawed is perfectly fine. I don’t need to tell you that the better the quality of the prawn, the better the dish!Alternatives: Fish and chicken are popular alternatives to prawns, so I’ve included directions for both of these in the recipe notes.
• Potato – It’s important to ensure you do not cut the potato too thick, or it will take a long time to cook as potatoes take a surprisingly long time to cook in coconut sauce! The cutting size is specified in the recipe.Any kind of potato is OK (waxy or starchy) for this recipe, but waxy will tend to hold its shape better.
• Carrot – Ditto the carrots on the thickness caveat! Follow the recipe!
• Coconut cream – We use cream to give the curry sauce its thickness as well as richness. You can use milk or lite versions, but the curry will be a little thinner in consistency and less full in richness. Look for brands that have a high percentage of coconut extract. Ayam brand is my choice.
• Tamarind puree – Tamarind is a sour fruit pod whose pulp is used in South East Asian food to add acidity to food like this curry. You can buy it is a jarred puree in large Australian supermarkets (Coles, Woolworths) or Asian grocers.
• Bamboo shoots – Sold in cans at large grocery stores (Woolies, Coles, Harris), they have a crisp juicy texture and have a unique taste. Substitute with green beans (for similar shape) or more carrots.

How to make Thai Yellow Curry

This part of the recipe really is simple – just simmer everything in a skillet.

1. Add chicken stock into the cooked off curry paste and stir to dissolve.
2. Simmer chicken stock – Simmer on medium heat for a minute to bring the flavours together.
3. Add remaining curry sauce ingredients: Reduce heat to medium low. Add tamarind, fish sauce and sugar. Stir until tamarind is dissolved.
4. Simmer 20 minutes – Add carrot and potato, then simmer the sauce for 15 minutes or until the potato is nearly cooked (pierce with a knife to check), it might take up to 20 minutes. Potato takes a surprisingly long time to cook in a thick coconut curry sauce!If your heat is too strong and the sauce reduces and thickens too quickly, lower heat and add a splash of water.
5. Prawns and bamboo shoots: Add prawns and bamboo shoots. Stir, then cook for 3 minutes until prawns are just cooked.
6. Plate up! Once the prawns are cooked, remove the curry out of the hot skillet into a serving bowl to prevent the prawns from overcooking. Overcooked, rubbery prawns in a homemade yellow curry from scratch is a depressing thought!Next, we’re going to finish the dish with a few garnishes!

Garnishes for Thai Yellow Curry

Here are the garnishes typically used to serve Thai Yellow Curry.

• Thai Basil Leaves – Tastes like regular basil plus a bit of aniseed flavour. Highly recommended to finish this dish off.Substitute with coriander/ cilantro (best) or normal Italian basil.
• Crispy fried shallot pieces (optional)– Salty little fried bits of shallots brings a great finishing touch to the dish both for the flavour and texture. Find it in the Asian section of supermarket but cheaper at Asian stores.
• Fresh chilli slices – Purely option, for a splash of colour and extra spice, if desired. Use large chillies if you want the colour without the spiciness.

A quick and easy recipe, this ain’t!

This is truely now not a quick ‘n smooth midweek meal. There’s a truthful few ingredients, and to make it as written calls for a experience to the Asian grocery shop. It involves sourcing substances that may be new to you, and preparing ingredients you haven’t cooked with earlier than.

However is it worth it?

Hundred instances over, yes yes sure!

At the same time as nowadays, you may get excellent store bought curry paste for Thai red Curry, inexperienced Curry and Massaman Curry, i’m but to discover an acceptable shop bought Yellow Curry Paste, even at Asian grocery stores.

And, on the threat of sounding absolutely obnoxious, this recipe supplies a curry that’s far superior to most trendy suburban Thai takeout places that take the jarred curry paste shortcuts.

So in case you’re a Thai Curry fan, i encourage you to strive making this at the least once. The taste is incomparable to canned pastes!