Popular across the Thai kitchens of various restaurants around the globe, Thai Green Curry Paste is a tangy, spicy-sweet paste native to the region, that is added to a variety of curries and gravy dishes.
This recipe makes the best authentic homemade green paste from scratch and is super easy to make. Here is how to make it.
I love Indian food, but then there are days when I like to give it a break and make something Continental.
Other than Indo Chinese and Italian, Thai is another cuisine that is really enjoyed at home.
It is even easy and quick to make.
Even these fancy meals become easy, when you already have some ingredients ready and stored in the fridge.
When it comes to Thai food, we really enjoy a good Thai curry.
The only thing that takes up a little time in making this curry is the paste, which holds all the flavor of this curry.
While there are many pre-made curry paste available in the market, but the homemade ones always tastes the best, as it is fresh and free of preservatives.
And that’s the reason why I keep Thai Green Curry Paste Recipe ready in my refrigerator so that whenever I feel like making a Thai Curry, all I have to do is add some veggies or chicken in a Thai curry paste, add some coconut milk and my Thai food craving gets sorted.
Out of all the Thai curries paste, the green paste is the easiest, the tastiest and the most convenient to use!
Curry pastes are an important part of Thai cuisine.
These pastes comprise of specific ingredients and are spicy-sweet to taste.
They are added to gravies, dry dishes, and even rice.
Here are some more Thai recipes, you can try for your weekend brunch, maybe – Thai Red Chicken Curry, Thai Fried Rice, Thai Mango Sticky Rice, Thai Basil Chicken, Thai Watermelon Salad and Thai Squash Fritters.
What is Thai Green Curry Paste?
It is a simple and full of flavor paste that is used to make Thai dishes.
To make this paste, you will need ingredients such as coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, shallots, garlic, red chillies, fish sauce, lemongrass stalk, shrimp paste, galangal or ginger, kaffir lime leaves, coriander roots, coriander leaves, and Thai basil leaves.
These ingredients are combined to make a paste, that is rich in flavor and aroma.
Some of the ingredients you won’t find in your everyday pantry and thus it’s great to shop for it once, make the paste, and use it whenever you want to make a Thai Curry.
Why make Green Paste at home?
I always try to make this green curry paste at home because it is
- Super easy to make.
- Taste much better than the store-bought version.
- Uses fresh ingredients.
- No preservatives are added.
- It’s very versatile. It can be used for making green curry, as a marinade for chicken, shrimps or fish or in soups.
Ingredients
Don’t get intimidated by the ingredients in this green curry paste.
The list looks long but these are all very basic ingredients that are easily available in supermarkets.
Green Curry Paste is simply prepared by using easily available ingredients like red chillies, fish sauce, lemongrass stalk, shrimp paste, galangal or ginger, kaffir lime leaves, coriander leaves, and lemongrass give it a green hue.
Shrimp paste gives a very traditional taste to this paste but if it is not available, you can skip adding it and replacing it with soy sauce.
This tangy, spicy, sweet paste is used in the preparation of Thai Green Chicken Curry as well as other veg and non-veg preparations.
Traditionally, this paste was made using a stone mortar and pestle.
But now you do not need to use mortar and pestle for making this easy paste because it can easily be made in a food processor as well.
Can I substitute red curry paste for green curry paste?
Although Thai Green and Red Curry are very different in taste from each other, they can be used interchangeably in a recipe.
The amount of both the pastes required to make curry is the same and the way they behave while cooking is also the same.
Pro Tips by Neha
Do not make the paste too smooth. It should be a little coarse in texture.
Use fresh ingredients to make this paste. The taste of the ingredients shines through in the paste and it makes a lot of difference.
Although these pastes are easily available in the market these days, the Authentic Green Curry paste can be prepared within no time at home as well.
It is definitely more flavourful than the store-bought ones but it is also much economical to make at home.
This paste is also gluten-free if soy sauce is not added.
But you can add tamari for the flavor and yet keep it gluten-free. You can also add some soy sauce as a replacement for fish sauce and shrimp paste.
Storage Suggestions
You can make a big batch and refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to a month and use it whenever required.
You can also freeze this paste for later use.
How to make Vegetarian/Vegan Thai Curry Green Paste?
To make a vegan or vegetarian version of this paste, skip adding shrimp paste and fish sauce.
Add 1 tbsp of Soy Sauce or Tamari (For Vegan Version) instead and keep the remaining ingredients the same.
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Step by Step Recipe
This recipe is just dumped and make one. All you have to do is to add all the ingredients in a blender and it’s already done.
Green Curry paste ready in no time.
Thai Green Curry Paste Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tsp Coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns
- 6-8 Shallots (Use 1/2 chopped onion if shallots are not available )
- 3-4 cloves Garlic
- 1 tbsp Coriander roots (Chopped (You can use coriander stem if roots are not available))
- 1 tbsp Coriander leaves
- 3-4 Red chillies
- 1 inch piece Galangal or Ginger
- 1 Lemon grass stalk (Remove the leaves from outside the stalk and cut into slices)
- 1 Kaffir lime leaves (Chopped)
- 1 tsp Shrimp paste (Optional)
- 8-10 Thai basil leaves
- 1 tsp Fish sauce
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Oil
Instructions
- Dry roast coriander seeds, cumin seeds and black peppercorns until slightly fragrant and browned.
- Add all the ingredients in a mortar and pestle and pound to make a smooth paste.
- You can also add all the ingredients in a food processor and grind to make a coarse paste.
Divya
Will omitting shrimp paste affect the flavor of the paste?
Thank you!
Love your blog! I look forward to reading it everyday
Ruchita
What would be the vegetarian version of it?
Which ingredient should act as a replacement for fish sauce and shrimp?
msnehamathur
You can skip using the fish sauce and add some more of Soy sauce for the veg version.
Vaidehi Mohile
Hi Neha,
Thank you very much for this awesome recipe! Tried ot today and it tastes yummm. Totally as if its made from store bought pastes. Never buying again! I used green chillies instead of red and onion instead of shallots!