Thai Yellow Curry Paste
This Thai yellow curry paste is fragrant, smooth, and perfect for chicken curries, noodle soups, and stir-fries.
- Prep time
- 10 min
- Cook time
- 10 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 5 dried chilies (mild → remove seeds; spicier → keep some seeds)
- 20 g lemongrass (finely sliced, use the tender inner part)
- 10 g kaffir lime zest
- 15 g galangal (sliced thin)
- 4 cloves garlic
- 50 g shallots (sliced)
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- ½ tsp coriander seeds
- ¼ tsp cumin seeds
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 1 tsp shrimp paste
- ½ tbsp oil
Instructions
- 1
Before you start, make sure all your ingredients are chopped small. This makes both pounding and blending much easier and gives a smoother paste.
- 2
With a food processor
- 3
Add dried chilies, lemongrass, kaffir lime zest, galangal, garlic, shallots, turmeric powder, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, salt, shrimp paste, and oil to a food processor.
- 4
Blend until thick, smooth, and spreadable, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed.
- 5
With a mortar and pestle
- 6
Pound dried chilies, lemongrass, galangal, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, salt, and turmeric powder until coarse.
- 7
Add garlic, kaffir lime zest, shallots, and shrimp paste. Pound until the paste is smooth, thick, and fragrant, with no visible chunks.