Thai Massaman curry paste (1kg by Mae Ploy)

Product Information

While my go-to store-bought paste has been Mae Ploy for years, and I have used many other brands in the past, I've never really compared them side by side or paid close attention to the subtle differences. So, to really find out what is the best brand (at least according to me), a blind taste test is called for.

Start by frying 50g of the paste with oil, then pour in a cup of coconut milk to form the base of your sauce. Add your meat, along with more coconut milk then bring to the boil. Add cubed potatoes, sliced onion and peanuts and cook until the veg is soft. Though we did not test other kinds of curry pastes (yellow, green, etc.), I have used them in the past and I am quite certain that the results would not be all that different. The top 3 might switch positions a bit (and it's worth noting that Mae Ploy yellow curry paste doesn't contain shrimp paste), but I highly doubt that the bottom 2 would be different.I chose only brands that are commonly available outside of Thailand; so nothing obscure, local, or specific to Thailand, the US or Canada. Does Thai Kitchen make a curry I would enjoy? As a Thai person, I find it a little unsatisfying, but I wouldn't call it a bad meal. For kids, people sensitive to spice, or someone completely uninitiated to spicy cuisines, this might be a great first step. And you know what, that's probably the audience they're making this paste for. The Takeaways These are the fresh aromatic ingredients for making Massaman paste. Most of these fresh ingredients can be found at the Asian store near you. Turn off the heat, stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of reserved coconut fat, cover with a lid and rest for a few minutes to help the meat relax. In a large, deep skillet, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil until the garlic is light brown. You don’t want the garlic to burn, so be sure to watch it.

At the basic level, Thai curry paste is simply a mixture of ground herbs and spices - and there are tons of varieties: red, green, yellow, massaman, panang, etc. They're also used in many dishes beyond Thai curries, such as this cauliflower stir fry and Thai fish cakes.More of a video person? Watch the Curry Paste Tasting Video here, complete with my live reaction! How I Chose the Brands for Review There are a large variety of brands out there, and it’s impossible for me to taste test them all, so I had to narrow it down to a manageable number and here’s how I made the choice. Massaman curry is flavored with massaman curry paste – a curry paste that has sweeter notes to it. The paste is traditionally made with ingredients such as red chilies and flavored with ginger, shallots, garlic, lemongrass, and spices like cardamom, coriander, cumin, and cinnamon.