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THAI GREEN CURRY PASTE

Servings: 3 cups

Ingredients

  • 12 green chillies
  • ¾ cup shallots (or onion)
  • ¾ cup coriander roots and stems
  • ½ cup lemongrass
  • ½ cup galangal (see notes)
  • ¼ cup oil
  • 10 garlic cloves
  • 4" piece of ginger
  • 2 tbsp lime or lemon peel
  • 1 ½ tbsp coriander seeds (or powder)
  • 1 tbsp cumin seeds (or powder)
  • 3 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • ¾ tsp turmeric powder
  • 5 kaffir lime leaves/regular lime leaves (optional)

Instructions

  • Prepping lemongrass: you’ll be using only about a bottom third of the lemongrass stalks here. Remove any tough outer layers and slice the tender white parts into rounds. (Retain the tops to make lemongrass tea.)
  • Roughly peel and slice the ginger and galangal. Slice the outer layer of the lime or lemon for the peels. Wash the coriander roots and stems thoroughly to rid them of any mud.
  • Add all the ingredients except the oil to a blender jar and blend to a smooth paste. (Note: using a food processor here will chop them to really fine bits and not make a smooth paste. You want to use a blender for the job.)
  • Scrape down the sides and continue blending with a little bit of oil at a time to get a smooth paste. If your paste still looks too thick and is sticking to the blades, add up to ¼ cup of water to help it along.
  • Storing in the fridge: decant into jars and pour a thin layer of oil to fully cover the top. Refrigerate for up to a week.
  • Freezing: transfer to containers or ziplock bags and freeze. Do this in your preferred portion sizes so you can thaw them individually. Once thawed, don’t refreeze.

Notes

If you can’t find galangal, replace it with mango ginger in the same quantity.
Coriander and cumin seeds have better flavour than the powders, so definitely use the whole spices if you have them.