If you're ready to take your Thai cooking to the next level, making your own Thai curry pastes is the way to go. Red curry paste is the most versatile paste in Thai cuisine, and I use it in many recipes. So if you were to only make one paste from scratch, this is the one!
In this post I'm showing you how to make red curry paste two ways: the easy way using electrical appliances, and the hard-but-traditional way using a mortar and pestle. I'll also answer all the questions you might have related to the process!
Jump to:
- Video: Red Curry Paste - The Easy and Hard Way
- Why You Should (Or Shouldn't) Make Curry Paste
- What is a Red Curry Paste Anyway?
- Ingredients
- How to Make Red Curry Paste
- Curry Paste Making Tools
- Storage
- Ways to Use Red Curry Paste (beside making a curry!)
- Other curry pastes you can make
- Authentic Thai Red Curry Paste Recipe
Video: Red Curry Paste - The Easy and Hard Way
If this is your first time making this recipe, I highly recommend watching the video tutorial first so you'll see how the herbs should be prepped, all the tools, and what the consistency of the paste should look like. It will ensure success!
Why You Should (Or Shouldn't) Make Curry Paste
Some people feel that a homemade curry paste is the only way to have a "legit" Thai curry. This is not true. MOST Thai people do not make our own curry paste. We buy it either in bulk from the wet market or buy packaged ones just like what you can find in the West.
It's similar to jam in the Western context. Do most people make their own? Probably not. Do some people? Of course. Is homemade jam always better? If you're good at it, sure, but not always! Replace the word jam with Thai curry paste, and it'll be true.
Having said that, here are some good reasons for making your own curry paste:
- You want to be able to control the spiciness of your curry paste. This is one problem with store bought - if it's too spicy, the only thing you can do is to use less; but that also means weaker flavours. Making your own is a great way to make it as mild as you can tolerate.
- You want to be able to control the salt level. Many commercial pastes are very salty because salt helps preserve the paste. But sometimes I have to limit how much paste I can use because of how salty it is. When you make your own you can control this, and you don't even have to add ANY salt if you don't want to.
- You can get all the ingredients, have the right tools, and want to see if you can make it better!
- You are not happy with what's available on the market. Then making your own is definitely worth a try. But also check out my red curry paste review to see if you've been buying one that's not recommended!
If one of the above sounds like you, let's get started!
What is a Red Curry Paste Anyway?
A curry paste, or prik gaeng พริกแกง, in the context of Thai cuisine refers to a paste of ground up herbs and spices. It's a very broad definition, and that's why we have so many varieties! Some are complex, such as massaman curry paste. Others are simple, such as sour curry paste.
Red curry paste is the most "basic" paste in Thai cuisine in a sense that it doesn't contain any ingredients that are unique to it. Everything in a red curry paste is also commonly used in other pastes. It's kind of like the basic tomato sauce in Italian cuisine.
This makes it the most versatile. It is the paste that gets incorporated into the greatest number of dishes because it has that "basic" flavour that works for any application. Aside from making red curry we also stir fry with it, and even put it in fish cakes!
Ingredients
Here are all the ingredients for Thai red curry paste. Try not to make any more substitutions than are recommended below, otherwise the flavour will not be right, and you would be better off buying a good brand of store-bought paste!
- Mild dried red chillies. This is the red in red curry. In Thailand we use dried spur chilies or prik chee fa, but here guajillo or puya peppers are perfect. You want to use mild chilies as the bulk of your curry paste so you can add as much as needed without worrying about it becoming too hot.
- Spicy dried red chilies. This is where you customize the heat level. Add as little or as much as you want to achieve your desired level. Dried Thai chilies are great if you can find them, but here I use arbol chilies. The generic dried chilies sold at most Asian markets will also work.
*If you only have spicy dried chilies available, and you do not want a very spicy paste, remove all of the seeds and the white pith, and use only the red part of the chilies. - White peppercorns.
- Salt. If pounding the chilies by hand use coarse salt. If using a coffee grinder, any salt will do. It is not actually necessary to add salt if you're going to freeze it or use it right away - all the seasoning can happen during the cooking - but it is traditionally added to make the paste last longer.
- Lemongrass. Use only the bottom half of the lemongrass stalk as that is the most flavourful part.
- Galangal. Use fresh or frozen galangal for the best flavour. Don't use dried or powdered galangal.
- Makrut lime zest (kaffir lime zest). Probably the most difficult thing to find on this list, but not to worry. The zest has the same aroma as the more common makrut lime leaves, but the leaves are very tough and hard to grind down into a paste. So you can omit the zest and add a few extra leaves into the dish when you cook instead. If making a curry, add 5-6 torn leaves and let them infuse, or add finely julienned leaves into stir fries or other dishes.
- Cilantro roots or cilantro stems. Roots of cilantro are very aromatic and have the same aroma as the leaves. But unlike the more tender leaves, the roots can withstand cooking without turning into black mush. Stems can serve as a great substitute for this purpose.
- Garlic
- Shallots
- Fermented shrimp paste. Called gapi in Thai, this funky paste adds a lot of depth and umami. You can substitute Malaysian or Indonesian shrimp paste (belacan or terasi). If vegan, substitute miso paste and/or some finely grated dried shiitake mushrooms, as I do in this vegan green curry recipe. You can also omit it altogether then add more fish sauce to the curry itself, or use soy sauce if vegan.
- Coriander seeds and cumin seeds (optional). See 2 Types of Red Curry Paste below.
Note: 2 Types of Red Curry Paste
There are actually two pastes that both go by the name "red curry paste" in English: prik gaeng kua and prik gaeng ped. The difference between these two is slight: gaeng ped includes coriander seeds and cumin seeds, whereas gaeng kua does not. At least, this is the line I draw, but people don’t always agree on it.
I personally prefer prik gaeng kua (sans extra spices) but it is a matter of preference so feel free to make whichever you prefer. They are similar enough to be interchangeable as the amount of spices added is not much.
How to Make Red Curry Paste
Here's a bird's eye view of the process using two different methods. For a demonstration, see the video tutorial. For the full recipe with ingredient amounts, see the recipe card below.
Method 1: The Easy Way (the method I use)
- Using a coffee grinder, grind the dried chilies and any dried spices into a powder.
- Place the lemongrass, galangal, cilantro roots, and makrut lime zest into a narrow container; such as a glass measuring cup. Top it with the garlic and shallots and then use an immersion blender to blend everything until fine. You will need to lift and reposition the blender several times, stopping to scrape the bottom and bringing it to the top halfway through. See more about tools for making curry paste below.
- Once the mixture is fine, add the ground chili mixture, salt and shrimp paste and blend to mix.
- You can use right away, refrigerate for a few days, or freeze for a few months.
If using a mortar and pestle:
- Cut the dried chilies into 1-inch chunks and soak them in room temp water for at least half an hour (longer is better) until they are softened. Drain and pat dry as much as possible.
- Add the chilies to the mortar and add some coarse salt and pound into a paste.
- Once it's about 70% fine, add any dried spices you're using.
- Add lemongrass, galangal, makrut lime zest and cilantro stems and pound into a fine paste.
- Add the garlic and shallots and pound into a paste.
- At this stage get it as fine as you can. A smooth paste will mean a flavourful curry sauce and a smooth texture. (It took me about 16 minutes from start to finish)
- Add shrimp paste and pound to mix.
- Use right away, refrigerate for a few days, or freeze for a few months.
Curry Paste Making Tools
See the video tutorial for a demonstration of how to use these tools.
I have figured out through much trial and error that the most efficient way to make a curry paste is to use two tools:
- a coffee grinder/spice grinder for the dried ingredients; any cheap one will do, and here's what I use. I don't suggest sharing the same grinder with your coffee beans; but if you do, be sure to wash it thoroughly after!
- an immersion blender for the fresh herbs. I use a Breville which is a 280-watt model and is quite powerful. I don't know if a weaker one would work as well, but it's worth a try if you already have one.
If you only have a coffee grinder, that's fine, it will still be of tremendous help as the dried chilies are the toughest to grind down. You can then grind the fresh herbs by hand using a large granite mortar and pestle. No cute little marble sets for this!
You can of course just pound everything by hand in a mortar and pestle, as that is the traditional way. I have provided instructions for this also, but know that it will take some muscles, but most importantly, patience!
What about a food processor or a blender?
A blender is not ideal because in order for it to work well you need to make a LOT of paste, AND you need to add extra liquid. Using this paste in recipes will then be problematic due to all the extra liquid, and in some recipes it simply will not work.
A food processor is also not ideal because not only do you have to make a lot again to make it work properly, but it will never get the paste as fine as it needs to be. Your herbs will still be in small pieces, and your curry will not have the right flavour or texture.
Storage
Any Thai curry paste will last in the fridge in an airtight container for several days, BUT unless I have immediate plans to use it in the next few days, I always freeze my curry paste to preserve the flavours.
Freeze in a freezer bag, in portions so it's easy to use, and removing as much air from it as possible. You can also freeze in mason jars.
Ways to Use Red Curry Paste (beside making a curry!)
Here's a basic Thai red curry recipe to get you started, but there are so many other Thai dishes that use red curry pastes. Check out this post on 5 different ways to use Thai curry pastes.
Other curry pastes you can make
Now that you've made a red curry paste, the good news is that all our other curry pastes will follow the same process, just with different ingredients! Next time, try this homemade Thai green curry paste which will be way more vibrant green than any store-bought version thanks to the added Thai basil. Or if you love the aroma or warm spices try making yellow curry paste or massaman curry paste!
Also explore my library of Thai curry recipes here for some more inspirations.
Print
Authentic Thai Red Curry Paste Recipe
- Total Time: 25-40 mins depending on method
- Yield: ⅔ cup, for 2 batches of 4-serving curry
- Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients
- ¾ ounce (20 g) mild dried red chilies, such as guajillo or puya, cut in ½-inch chunks
- ½ ounce (10 g) spicy dried red chilies, such as Thai or arbol chilies, cut in ½-inch chunks (see note 1)
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) white peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) coarse salt (see note 2)
- 1 stalk lemongrass, bottom half only, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons (15 g) finely chopped galangal
- 4 cilantro roots, or 10 to 12 cilantro stems, chopped
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) chopped makrut lime zest (see note 3)
- 6 cloves (30 g) garlic, chopped
- ½ cup (70 g) chopped shallots
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) fermented shrimp paste, if vegan sub miso
OPTIONAL SPICES
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml ) coriander seeds, toasted
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml ) cumin seeds, toasted
Instructions
METHOD 1: The Easy Way
- Grind dry spices with a coffee grinder: Add the dried chilies, peppercorns and salt into the coffee grinder. If using coriander and cumin seeds, add them as well. Grind into a fine powder. *Allow chili dust to settle fully before opening the grinder, and don't put your face over it when you do to avoid inhaling chili dust!
- Use an immersion blender for the herbs: Place the lemongrass, galangal, cilantro roots, and makrut lime zest in a narrow container, such as a glass measuring cup. Top it off with the garlic, shallots, and shrimp paste. (It is easier to blend with the moist ingredients on top.)
- Use the immersion blender to blend everything until fine. You will need to lift and reposition the blender several times, stopping to scrape the bottom and bringing it to the top halfway through.
- Once the mixture is fine, add the ground chili mixture and blend to mix.
METHOD 2: Mortar & Pestle
- Soak the dried chilies in water for at least 30 minutes, longer if possible, so they are softened. Drain and pat them dry as best you can. (Excess water will make it harder to pound.)
- Grind white peppercorns and any other dry spices into a powder. Remove and set aside.
- Pound the chilies with the salt into a fine paste. Once it starts to look mashed, add the ground dry spices to help absorb the moisture, then continue to pound into a fine paste.
- Add the lemongrass, galangal, cilantro roots, and makrut lime zest and pound into a fine paste.
- Add the garlic and shallots and pound into a fine paste.
- Add the ground chili mixture and pound until well combined. Add the shrimp paste and pound to mix.
*It took me 16 minutes of pounding for this amount of curry paste in a 3-cup mortar. Time will vary depending on your speed, strength, size of mortar, and amount of paste.
Use right away, store in the fridge for up to 3 days, or divide into portions and freeze for up to a few months.
Notes
- You can add as many of the spicy chilies as you like depending on how spicy you want the paste to be. The seeds can be left in for more heat or removed for less.
- Coarse salt will help break down chilies if you are hand-pounding. If using a grinder, use any salt.
- If you don’t have makrut lime zest, you can add 2-3 makrut lime leaves, torn into chunks, when making the curry. If you don't have the leaves, substitute regular lime zest in the curry paste.
Travis says
I made the curry paste and it was excellent. If I make a larger batch does it freeze very well?
Pailin Chongchitnant says
yep it freezes great! Thank you!
Brian Edelstein says
You are the best!
Do you add your paste to the coconut milk first, then heat and then strain it? Or do you puree the coconut milk + paste to make it smooth. Or does the paste dissolve beautifully into the milk and the aforementioned are not necessary. I have to strain mine.
Regards,
Brian
Pailin Chongchitnant says
If you make the paste properly (meaning finely ground) you do not need to strain anything out. If the curry isn't smooth it means you didn't grind the paste finely enough. Though if it happens, your solution of pureeing in the blender would work. Try not to strain things out as all those bits add to the body of the curry. You can see how I use the paste in any of my curry recipes on the site!
Alex says
Hi P'Pailin,
I am from a Peranakan household in Malaysia, and it is so common to saute our spice paste prior to adding coconut milk/tamarind juice/proteins, or even before storing it (hence storing it in oilier form). I noticed this is a huge departure from most Thai cooking where the paste is added to a simmering liquid instead.
While i am interested to know more about the difference during cooking, I am even more invested in knowing the difference it makes for storing it in its saute-ed form. I am thinking of making large batches of spice paste and making them shelf-stable by sauteing them prior to bottling.
Hope to hear your thoughts on this!
Chon Kaew! (my feeble attempt at "Smash Glass!")
Alex
Pailin Chongchitnant says
We also saute the curry paste! For all our coconut curries the paste is always sauteed, but we saute it when we cook the dish, not before storage. THere's no difference either way, you can saute then store, then simply add liquid when you cook it. Depends on at which stage you want to spend the extra time.
Richard van Dorp says
Hi, what a great website you have. I will make the Red Curry Pate but here in Holland we don't have fresh Galangal and cilantro in stores, only in powder. Can I replace it for powder and how much?
Keep up the great work!
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Thank you! You could try adding about a teaspoon of galangal powder and it would probably be okay, don't worry about cilantro you can omit it.
Jenn says
Thank you so much Pai! This recipe guideline is amazing—you’re such a thorough teacher. I didn’t have the galangal but followed along the authentic way, using fresh and dried birds eye chilis. It was delicious and quick. So much better than the store brands even though I also like the ones in your video that you recommend. Even my five year old loved the process, the spice and salt level and he was so happy he could taste all the herb flavours!
Steve says
Looking forward to trying this. Is the video still available? The links seem to be broken. Thanks!
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Hi! The video is working for me, try again? Make sure you don't have ad blockers turned on.
Rachel says
Made this to avoid the weekend takeaway trap and can honestly say it ended up so tasty with levels of flavour. I used Galangal paste as I couldn’t find fresh and I just used dried Thai chillis instead of 2 types but it tasted amazing. Definitely much less salty than store bought or takeaway curry and I made double so I can have it again soon 😝
Siew Choo says
Hi, I made this Thai Red Curry Paste using your recipe and it definitely tasted much better than store-bought paste, that I found to be very salty. Thanks so much for sharing your recipe. I keep coming back to try your recipes as the food turned out authentically Thai.
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Thank you!!
Rick says
I tried your recipe for Red Curry Paste and I wanted to say that it was fantastic! I also tried one batch with White or regular Cumin and one batch with Kala Jheera or Black Cumin and they were both delicious. While it is true that the Kala Jheera taste was a little softer and sweeter than the White Cumin, the taste difference would probably not even be noticed by most of my friends. I am guessing that maybe the Kala Jheera was used in court-style curry pastes and that is why it's not used in everyday Thai cooking. Try it if you like.
Pailin Chongchitnant says
So happy to hear! And thank you for taking the time to report back. Now I know 🙂
Marty says
I quadrupled the recipe, and found that a food processor works well. Chop the lime zest very fine, before adding to the processor. On a side note, I got the Makrut limes from here (not affiliated)
https://www.pearsonranch.com/kaffir-limes/
Rick says
A Thai chef in Bangkok who had a particularly luscious Red Curry told me Shah Jeera (Black Cumin) should be used instead of regular Cumin for a more authentic taste. What are your thoughts on that?
Tim says
I don't have any of the recommended tools (only a small mortar), so I made twice the quantity in the recipe and used a bullet blender for the chilis and peppercorns and a food processor for everything else and I can tell everyone in the same situation that it came out solidly acceptable.
Also, the advantage of making twice the amount is that you then have more curry paste :p
Glenn Hazle says
I was told by a Thai chef that Shah Jeera (Black Cumin) seeds should be used instead of regular Cumin. It does have a slightly different taste and with Caraway notes to the flavor, this might be why some Thai Red Curry recipes list Caraway seeds as an ingredient, which also isn't quite the correct taste. What are your thoughts on this?
I have a 300-watt immersion blender that still doesn't get the harder herbs quite fine enough. My solution is to then transfer a partially (mostly) blended paste to a mortar and pestle to pound it finer until I am satisfied with the results. This way I hope to get the benefit of both methods. Maybe I am just deluding myself. But, it works for me.
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Hi Glenn, interesting. Black cumin isn't a common spice in Thailand so it might have been a personal preference of the chef who suggested it to you. Not all immersion blenders are created equal and I guess even wattage along doesn't tell the whole story. The Breville is definitely one of the best at the task, but the combo method is a good workaround!
Rick says
Just curious. Have you ever tried Black Cumin (Shah Jeera) in your red curry? If so, I would love to know your opinion. Sorting through my many Tahi cookbook recipes (including many Thai chefs), I see Black Cumin almost as frequently as regular (often called White Cumin). The Black has a softer, sweeter, nuttier taste that I can definitely discern over the White. I often see it listed as Carraway. While Carraway is in the same family as Shah Jeera, it is not the same plant. For Thai food, I have never seen it listed in anything except Red Curry Paste. It is probably a personal choice as you say. However, I wonder if it is a regional thing.
Pailin Chongchitnant says
I am not familiar with black vs white cumin. The cumin we use in Thai cuisine, and in red curry, would be the "regular" cumin (jeera) that is sold in most grocery stores. I think there might be some translation issues also so I'm not sure what people are talking about exactly when they say "black cumin"
Rick says
Shahi Jeera (or Sha Jeera, Black Cumin, Royal Cumin) belongs to the family of Apiaceae and its genus name is Bunium. The same family as Caraway, but a different genus. White Cumin's botanical name is Cuminum Cyminum. In a different family and genus altogether. I have seen Thai curry recipes say Caraway instead of Shahi Jeera. But, the taste is different and not interchangeable to me. Shahi in Hindi means royal, hence the name royal cumin. It tastes similar to cumin (white) but milder, nuttier, and sweeter. It is readily found in Indian Grocery stores.
Rick says
I just made a batch of your red curry paste using Shahi Jeera. I wanted to put a picture of it. But I guess one cannot do that in the comments. It smells lovely. Tomorrow I will make a Red Chicken Curry with it and I found some Thai Pea Eggplants at our local Asian Grocery Store. I will report back on how it tastes.
Sai says
I’ve used the stick blended since you first recommended it years ago and it’s made life so much easier. While I use your curry paste recipe often, I’ve also adapted it to my Burmese palate for Burmese dishes. We don’t really use curry pastes per se in Burma but I find it makes quick work for a weeknight meal if I have some in the freezer. For my Burmese version I just omit the kaffir lime and white pepper, and then sub ginger for the galangal. Thanks as always for such great insights and of course entertainment!
JOANNE says
Maesri curry paste is the best and I believe she recommended it also. They have several flavours of curry paste also! Highly recommend!
Ian Robbins says
Love your site, channels, and all of your content. Making Thai red curry paste is a beautiful thing and your recipe sounds perfect, but is there a particular brand that you recommend that can be purchased online?
Tim says
I made this paste, and it was great fun and delicious! I do have a small request, which is it would be very helpful to have weights for the ingredients, as well. The reason is that lemongrass and galangal can be quite powerful, and with different coarseness of chopping a tablespoon can vary wildly. With weights, it would be possible to make the first batch with the confidence that the product you get at the end tastes the way it is supposed to. (Mine tastes very strongly of galangal!)
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Thank you Tim! And it's already on my list of things to do, so thanks for the push!
Eaton Burke says
Can the excess be refrigerated?