Recipes

Massaman Curry Paste

Kaeng Massaman

A warmly spiced curry paste built on cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and toasted chili

Prep

30 min

Cook

5 min

Serves

4

Heat

medium

Massaman paste reveals its outside influence clearly in its spice cabinet: cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg, warm baking spices rarely found in other Thai curry pastes, join toasted cumin and coriander seed and smoky dried chili to form a base entirely distinct from the fresher, more herbaceous pastes used elsewhere in Thai cooking. The fresh aromatics — lemongrass, galangal, garlic, shallot, coriander root, kaffir lime — stay largely the same as in other curry pastes, which is really the point: it's the specific dry spice blend layered on top that gives each curry its own identity. Pounded by hand in a mortar and pestle until smooth but never quite as uniform as a packaged paste, the finished product carries a texture that adds real character to the curry it eventually becomes.

Ingredients

• 15 Thai long chili (toasted, seeded)
• 1 tablespoon Coriander seeds (toasted)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Cumin seeds (toasted)
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon White pepper, finely ground
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 3 tablespoons Red shallots (finely chopped)
• 2 tablespoons Garlic (finely chopped)
• 1 tablespoon Lemongrass (bottom portion, sliced into thin rings)
• 2 teaspoons Galangal root (grated or finely chopped)
• 1 tablespoon Coriander root (finely chopped)
• 2 teaspoons Kaffir lime rind (grated)
• 1 teaspoon Thai shrimp paste

Directions

1. Toast the coriander and cumin seeds together in a dry pan over low heat, shaking often, until they crackle and darken slightly, about a minute. Watch closely so they don't burn.
2. In the same pan, toast the chilies until they puff up, lightly browned with a few darker spots for smoky flavor.
3. Once cooled, cut the chilies open and remove all the seeds.
4. Grind the chilies, toasted seeds, remaining dry spices, and salt together in a food processor or spice grinder until very fine. Set aside.
5. Grate the galangal and kaffir lime rind. Slice the lemongrass into thin rings. Finely chop the coriander root, garlic, and shallots.
6. Grind all the fresh herbs together until smooth in a food processor.
7. In a mortar and pestle, pound the ground herbs until fully mashed and smooth.
8. Add the ground dry spice mixture and continue pounding, working from side to side, breaking down any large pieces, until well blended — this can take up to 15 minutes.
9. Add the shrimp paste and mash in thoroughly until no large pieces remain. A little roughness is normal and even desirable for a homemade paste, adding texture to the finished curry.
10. Store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for about a week, or freeze in single-use portions for longer storage — it holds up well as long as it's thawed only once.

Notes

Toast the chili and seeds until you see a few dark, slightly burnt spots rather than stopping at uniform light brown — those charred bits are what give the finished paste a subtle smoky depth.

Substitutions

Freshly ground whole spices give noticeably better flavor than pre-ground versions, though pre-ground cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg work fine in a pinch.