Trying some of the best Thai curry dishes is a must-do for anyone traveling to Thailand. But the entire experience can be quite confusing because curries come in different varieties, such as green, red, and yellow, as well as the popular Panang and Massaman varieties. To help lovers of Thai cuisine, we’ve explained these curies in detail.
Sweet Green Curry
Apart from being the hottest of all curries, the sweet green curry is delicious as it uses copious amounts of coconut milk and lime juice. Usually, it may consist of green chilis and eggplant in a green curry sauce. The sauce is made from Thai basil, green chilis, lime leaves, blue ginger, kra chai, shallots, garlic, and turmeric.
Red Curry
The red curry is also referred to as the “spicy curry.” The fiery dish originates from central Thailand. It draws its color from the excessive amounts of red chilis used, which are crushed with shallots, garlic, blue ginger, and lemongrass. The red curry paste is then mixed with coconut milk to produce a curry sauce.
Yellow Curry
Yellow curry comes in different varieties in Thailand, with the most common form being very rich because it contains coconut cream. Other yellow-colored varieties include the orange curry, gold curry, and the elephant curry. The gold curry is a spicier version of the yellow curry. The elephant curry is very spicy but made without coconut milk, while the orange curry is very sour and made without coconut milk. Importantly, all three varieties of yellow curries are made with a lot of turmeric. They can also include yellow mustard seeds, cumin, and kaffir lime leaves.
Massaman Curry
The Massaman curry is extracted from Indian curry and is a favorite in central and southern Thailand. Massaman curry paste is made using red chilis, garlic, lemongrass, blue ginger, shallots, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves, coriander, cumin, and cinnamon. Kaffir lime leaves and coconut milk are then added to create the sauce, topped off with potatoes and peanuts.
Panang Curry
Panang curry traces its roots to Laos and is a favorite in central Thailand. It is more subtly flavored and milder than other Thai curries. It is made from dried chilis, coconut milk, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, garlic, blue ginger, shallots, cilantro, cumin, and some paste. Occasionally, it can contain peanuts.
Getting authentic Thai cuisine can bring significant flavor to your taste buds, especially when the appropriate Thai curries are used. At Thai Ginger Restaurants, we utilize authentic Thai curries to give you an unforgettable dining experience.
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For all your in-house and take-out dining needs, visit our restaurant for a wide range of Thai cuisines. Do you have any upcoming celebrations? Visit any of our family-friendly locations in the Seattle area to enjoy an authentic Thai cuisine experience. You can also order online for takeout or delivery.
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FAQs
These curries are often coconut milk-based, and get their distinctive colors from the chilies, herbs, and spices used. Red curry includes red bell pepper, coriander, lemongrass, ginger, cumin, and the red chilies that offer its iconic heat.
What is the secret to Thai curry? ›
The secret to making amazing Thai curries is to use plenty of aromatics, like onion, ginger and garlic. Choose full-fat coconut milk for its richness (you won't regret it!). Stirring in just a little bit of rice vinegar and sugar adds tons of complexity.
What are the 5 elements of Thai cooking? ›
Thai cuisine is renowned for its incredible balance of flavors, combining the perfect blend of sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and spicy tastes.
What is the tastiest Thai curry? ›
5 Mouth Watering Thai Curries That'll Leave You Wanting More
- Green Curry. This Green Curry is one of the best Thai curries if you like hot, spicy food. ...
- Red Curry. Kaeng Phet is as spicy as they come, bursting with the flavor of both fresh and dried red chillis. ...
- Yellow Curry. ...
- Panang Curry. ...
- Massaman Curry.
Ginger is a pretty essential ingredient to our curries - it's strong, it's spicy... it's gingery! But we've all felt that slightly sinking feeling when a recipe calls for a good few tablespoons of it - it just seems like a bit of a laborious task to get it prepped and ready to use.
Is ginger used in Thai cooking? ›
Ginger is in the same family as turmeric and galangal – all of which are used widely in Thai cuisine. It's got a hot, sweetly spicy flavour and is supposed to have lots of health benefits.
Why is my Thai curry not red? ›
Traditionally, all Thai curries were made with the same ingredients except for one thing: the chilies. Red curry was made with several red chilies for a fiery hot dish, while green curry was made with green chilies and yellow curry was made with yellow chilies.
What thickens a Thai curry? ›
Mix cornstarch, tapioca starch, or arrowroot with cold water or a cup of liquid from the curry sauce to make a slurry. Add this at the end of the cooking process—the sauce should thicken as soon as it returns to a boil.
Why is Thai curry better than Indian curry? ›
Thai curries have a brighter flavor and soupier consistency, because they use lots of fresh herbs and are cooked for less time than Indian curries. It's worth your time stocking up on some of the unique ingredients — you can freeze herbs like lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves for multiple future uses.
What are the 4 pillars of Thai cooking? ›
Sour - Sweet - Salty - Spicy
Every Thai dishes will include at least 2 of these elements in some way, with one being dominant depending on type of dish. Sometimes you will get all 4, and in this case there would be 2 dominating flavour and 2 subtle undertones.
5 Thai Food Spices That Make Every Dish Excellent
- Red and Green Chilli. Chilli can make food go from bland to fantastic. ...
- Turmeric. Turmeric is one of the most wonderful and flavorful Thai food spices that you'll find in Thai curries and chicken dishes. ...
- Cumin. ...
- Cinnamon. ...
- Pepper. ...
- Time to Taste Some Thai Food Spices!
Traditional Thai cooking calls for a whole range of fresh herbs and spices, from ginger to galangal, and Thai basil to turmeric. However, none is more prominent than the fiery chilli, featuring in just about any Thai dish in its various forms—dried, fresh, pickled, and so forth.
What Thai curry is best for beginners? ›
Yellow curry is perhaps the mildest (although this can vary widely by restaurant and who's in the kitchen!), usually with more turmeric, shallots, garlic, and ginger. Potatoes often make an appearance in yellow curry, along with chicken and onions.
Which Thai curry is healthiest? ›
Green curry is great with chicken and shrimp because it offers a punch of seasoning to the protein. The long list of herbs also makes green curry one of the healthiest Thai cuisine dishes. You may also see green curry in Thai fusion dishes like pasta or sandwiches.
Which Thai curry is creamiest? ›
Thai massaman
It's popular in central and southern Thailand, and is usually topped off with potatoes and peanuts. This Thai curry is relatively mild in flavour, but I love how rich and creamy it is.
What is Thai curry made of? ›
All Thai-ed Up
All curry paste is made with the same or fairly similar base ingredients - hot chilies, lemongrass, ginger, garlic, shallot, shrimp paste, and dry herbs like cumin and coriander seeds, and turmeric.
Do Thai people use ginger? ›
It's used as a food flavoring and medicine. Ginger contains chemicals that might reduce nausea and swelling. These chemicals seem to work in the stomach and intestines, but they might also help the brain and nervous system to control nausea. People commonly use ginger for many types of nausea and vomiting.
Does Thai tea have ginger? ›
Thai Oolong tea, which is oolong tea steamed with ginger (Zingiber officinale), lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus), and celery, can also be referred to as Thai tea.
Can I use ginger instead of galangal in Thai curry? ›
Now, if you used ginger in place of galangal the dish will turn out fine, and it might even taste great, but the flavours will not be the same. It's like substituting basil for mint.
