7 Different Types Of Thai Curry

Curries are an essential feature of Thai cuisine and relate to both the meal and the curry paste that is used as the primary ingredient.

There are many varieties of Thai curry, but the most common are red, yellow, and green, which are distinguished by the color of the curry paste.

The color of any Thai curry is determined by the chilies and other spices used in its preparation. There are a few additional sorts of Thai curries that are less well-known but as wonderful.

Except for the chiles, all Thai curries contain identical components. However, as time passed, additional ingredients were added to the recipes to improve their flavor, giving them a more unique flavor from one another.

Let’s look at several different sorts of Thai curry:

Types Of Thai Curry

1. Green Curry (Gaeng Kiew Whan)

Green curry is the most well-known Thai curry; it lacks heat and is very creamy, thanks to the green chile paste and coconut milk used in the recipe.

Green curry originated in central Thailand and is typically cooked with shallots, lemongrass, white pepper, coriander root, garlic, kaffir lime, shrimp paste, and sea salt, as well as green chili paste and coconut milk, which give this meal its distinct flavor.

Thai green curry is often cooked with green vegetables such as green eggplant and fresh herbs such as sweet basil leaves, but it may also be made with meat or seafood; in Thailand, it is typically served with chicken or fish balls.

2. Penaeng Curry (Gaeng Penaeng)

Penang curry is a lesser-known curry that is often confused with another red curry (a sort of Thai curry).

Penang is a milder curry with a similar consistency to green curry; however, it utilizes less coconut milk than green curry, which makes the texture a little less liquidy.

Penang curry is milder in flavor and prepared with cumin and nutmeg, as well as long red chilies, shallots, garlic, galangal, lemongrass, kaffir lime rind, coriander root, white pepper, sea salt, and shrimp paste. It is often served with a dish of rice and topped with coconut cream.

Panang curry is often cooked with beef or pork, but depending on where you are in Thailand, it may also be made with peanuts. This curry may be cooked with a limited number of veggies.

3. Red Curry (Gaeng Phed)

When dealing with Thai curries, it is simple to make a mistake since they are so similar that you may wind up mistaking one with another. This mistake is frequently caused by oversimplification or an attempt to classify the curries by color.

The sole difference between red and green curry may seem to be the color and potentially additional ingredients such as fresh herbs or vegetables, but the changes, although small, are substantial.

Both curries have many similarities, including the use of a similar Thai paste and coconut milk foundation, which transforms the meal into a soup-like curry sauce, as well as comparable cooking techniques.

However, whereas the Penaeng dish is sweeter, the red curry is savorier and spicier. Red curry is ideally served with something rich, such as fatty hog or duck meat, since it is less sweet and more flavorful.

4. Sour Orange Curry (Gaeng Som)

This Thai curry is more of a broth and does not include any coconut milk. Because the basic paste is water-based, it is one of the spiciest curries despite having just five ingredients.

Dried red chilies, finger root ginger shallots, sea salt, and shrimp paste are used to make the sour orange curry paste. This meal is sour because it contains tamarind and some form of tropical fruit, such as pineapple.

Sour orange curry is often cooked with fish or shrimp, as well as any desired and readily accessible vegetable.

5. Massaman Curry (Gaeng Massaman)

Massaman curry is less popular in restaurants since it is one of the forms of Thai curry that must be cooked on low heat for an extended period of time. But the delay is definitely worth it; there is a distinct difference between slow and fast-cooked Thai curries.

Massaman is a Malaysian spice blend that includes coconut milk and a few additional spices such as cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.

Massaman curry is often cooked with potato and peanut pieces, making it thicker and more stew-like, with a mild, somewhat sweet flavor. This meal is often made with chicken, although beef is also a popular alternative.

6. Jungle Curry (Gaeng Pa)

Jungle curry is a core Thai meal that gets its name from the variety of herbs, vegetables, and spices used in its preparation; this dish is flavorful but can be rather hot!

It is a water-based meal with a curry paste created from a variety of herbs and chiles, giving the dish a distinct taste.

This Thai curry is often cooked with chicken or pig, but wild meats such as boar or even frog may be added to lend an even more unusual flavor and taste to the meal.

7. Yellow Curry (Gaeng Luang)

Yellow curry is a water-based curry that is somewhat hotter than sour orange curry. Traditionally, this curry is cooked with a liquid fish base, curry paste, and turmeric, which gives the meal its yellowish hue.

Yellow curry is often made with fish, such as seabass, mackerel, or any fish you choose. This meal has a few unusual ingredients, such as bamboo shoots, green papaya, and lotus stems.

Curry is a rich and diversified cuisine, with each family putting their own spin on it, but with a fairly stable foundation.

This is not a comprehensive list of Thai curries since there are many different kinds of Thai curries and variations on those types are as many as palm trees in Thailand. But if you want to learn more, this is a wonderful place to start!

Related Posts:

• Massaman Curry Paste Vs Red Curry Paste
• Red Curry Vs Panang Curry
• Yellow Curry Vs Red Curry