Thai Green Curry is one of the most popular curry dishes in Central Thailand. If you didn’t know that, you should definitely check out this other article that I wrote! In Thai, it is called Gaeng Keow Wan — which could be literally translated as Curry Green Sweet.
Bite-size pieces of chicken/beef/pork/fish/mushrooms/tofu. Little green-apple eggplants. Strips of tender, crunchy bamboo shoots. Fresh sprigs of cilantro. A nice generous bunch of fragrant, sweet basil. Creamy, coconut (cream) milk. Fish Sauce. Palm Sugar.
These ingredients and seasonings form the base of this glorious curry dish. The vibrant, green color in the curry comes from a paste that is made from the cilantro root or cilantro stems and fresh green chilies. The curry is typically served with a bowl of fragrant Thai rice.
How to make the Green Curry Paste
You will need:
- 1 tbsp of fresh lemon grass (sliced up)
- 10–15 fresh green chilies (depending on how spicy you want it to be)
- grated kaffir lime rinds (for that additional citrusy-flavor)
- 3–4 diced shallots
- 8–10 cloves (regular garlic)
- OR 6–8 cloves (Thai garlic) — Thai garlic is smaller & more pungent!
- 1 tsp diced fresh galangal
- chopped up cilantro stems/root (save the leaves for garnish)
- 1 tbsp of cumin seeds & 1 tbsp of coriander seeds
(that have to be gently roasted in a hot pan to release its oils & flavor) - add some salt & pepper to taste
- 1 tsp of shrimp paste
(which you can get in a jar from Chinatown or any Asian supermarket)
Traditionally, the paste would be made by hand in a granite-stone pestle-and-motar. All the ingredients above would be added in and then pounded for several minutes until all the ingredients can no longer be visibly seen — all but a deliciously, aromatic green mush.
However if you don’t have a pestle and motar, then I guess the more modern alternative would be to place it in a food processor and blend it up. Although, you might not get that same flavor without the addition of sweat, ̶b̶l̶o̶o̶d̶, and ̶t̶e̶a̶r̶s̶ ! (haha! kidding.)
The green curry paste goes well with a protein or ingredient of your choice like chicken, pork, beef, fish or tofu/vegetables/mushrooms!
** Before proceeding on to make the curry, it is encouraged that you first ‘crack’ the coconut cream — and that basically means to extract the coconut milk fats and separate the solid milk part by simmering the cream over heat for about 10–15 seconds. The oil from the coconut cream will remain.
The step that would give your curry dish the 10/10 star-quality flavor would be this!
After that, you can saute your paste in the extracted coconut oil until it is fragrant.
Gradually adding in coconut milk, your protein or ingredient, a tablespoon of palm sugar and a tablespoon of fish sauce. Let it come to a boil and absorb all those flavors. Then, add in some quartered green apple eggplants and strips of bamboo shoots. Boil until all ingredients are fully cooked.
*Season with additional fish sauce or palm sugar to your liking.
Finally, garnish it with some fragrant Thai basil leaves, pretty cilantro leaves and serve it with a side of steaming hot jasmine rice! People who are unable to taste your lip-smacking masterpiece, will DEFINITELY be green with envy!
(pun so intended!)
