Thai curry ( th, แกง, translit=kaeng, ) is a dish in

Thai cuisine Thai cuisine ( th, อาหารไทย, , ) is the national cuisine of Thailand. Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with strong aromatic components and a spicy edge. Australian chef David Thompson, an expert on Thai ...

made from

curry paste Indian curry pastes in a UK supermarket Curry paste usually refers to a paste used as a cooking ingredient in the preparation of a curry. There are different varieties of curry paste depending from the region and also within the same cuisine: *In ...

coconut milk Coconut milk is an opaque, milky-white liquid extracted from the grated pulp of mature coconuts. The opacity and rich taste of coconut milk are due to its high oil content, most of which is saturated fat. Coconut milk is a traditional food ...

or water, meat, seafood, vegetables or fruit, and herbs.

Curries A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included. There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradi ...

in Thailand mainly differ from the curries in India in their use of ingredients such as herbs and aromatic leaves over a mix of spices.

Definition

The first Thai dictionary from 1873 CE (2416 in the Thai Buddhist calendar) defines ''kaeng'' as a watery dish to be eaten with rice and utilizing

shrimp paste Shrimp paste or prawn sauce is a fermented condiment commonly used in Southeast Asian and Southern Chinese cuisines. It is primarily made from finely crushed shrimp or krill mixed with salt, and then fermented for several weeks. They are ei ...

, onions or shallots,

chillies Chili peppers (also chile, chile pepper, chilli pepper, or chilli), from Nahuatl '' chīlli'' (), are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for t ...

, and garlic as essential ingredients. Coconut milk is not included in this definition and many Thai curries, such as and , do not feature it. Curries in

Lanna The Lan Na Kingdom ( nod, , , "Kingdom of a Million Rice Fields"; th, อาณาจักรล้านนา, , ), also known as Lannathai, and most commonly called Lanna or Lanna Kingdom, was an Indianized state centered in present-day ...

(northern Thai) cuisine, with only a few exceptions, do not use coconut milk due to coconut palms not growing well, if at all, in the climate of the

Thai highlands The Thai highlands or Hills of northern Thailand is a mountainous natural region in the north of Thailand. Its mountain ranges are part of the system of hills extending through Laos, Burma, and China and linking to the Himalayas, of which they m ...

. The

spiciness Pungency () refers to the taste of food commonly referred to as spiciness, hotness or heat, found in foods such as chili peppers. Highly pungent tastes may be experienced as unpleasant. The term piquancy () is sometimes applied to foods with a l ...

of Thai curries depends on the amount and kind of chilli used in the making of the paste. Even within one type of curry the spiciness can differ widely. The word "curry" figures in the Thai language as ''"kari"'' ( th, กะหรี่), and refers to dishes using either an Indian-style

curry powder Curry powder is a spice mix originating from the Indian subcontinent where it is typically called garam masala. History Key ingredients of curry powder consist of ginger, garlic, fennel, mace, cumin, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon and turmeric ...

, known as ''phong kari'' in Thailand, or to the dish called ''kaeng kari'', an Indian-influenced curry that is made with spices that are common to Indian dishes but less often used in these proportions in Thai cuisine. ''Kung phat phong kari'' (prawns fried with egg and curry powder) is an example of a dish using the Indian style curry powder. Although is also defined as being of "watery" substance, the thickness of the sauce can vary considerably from

broth Broth, also known as bouillon (), is a savory liquid made of water in which meat, fish or vegetables have been simmered for a short period of time. It can be eaten alone, but it is most commonly used to prepare other dishes, such as soups, ...

-like to that of a thick

stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. A stew needs to have raw ingredients added to the gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables a ...

, and it can even be a completely dry dish. Representatives of dry curries, dishes which are (stir-)fried with a curry paste, are and . and are representatives of the more broth-like curries. and resemble stews. (a

steamed Steaming is a method of cooking using steam. This is often done with a food steamer, a kitchen appliance made specifically to cook food with steam, but food can also be steamed in a wok. In the American southwest, steam pits used for cooking hav ...

fish curry), (curry

aspic Aspic or meat jelly () is a savory gelatin made with a meat stock or broth, set in a mold to encase other ingredients. These often include pieces of meat, seafood, vegetable, or eggs. Aspic is also sometimes referred to as ''aspic gelée'' or ' ...

from northern Thailand) and noodle dishes such as are also seen as Thai curry dishes as they all use curry pastes in their preparation. The dish called is an exception to the rule that a should contain chillies, garlic, onions and shrimp paste. It is a clear Chinese style meat and/or vegetable broth with mixed vegetables and often also minced pork,

tofu Tofu (), also known as bean curd in English, is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness; it can be ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', ''extra firm'' or ''super f ...

and glass noodles. The name translates as "bland curry" but it is seen as being a ''tom'', a soup, and it is therefore also often called ''tom chuet''. Curries are eaten in combination with rice, the long-grained

jasmine rice Jasmine rice ( th, ข้าวหอมมะลิ; ; ) is a long-grain variety of fragrant rice (also known as aromatic rice). Its fragrance, reminiscent of ''pandan'' (''Pandanus amaryllifolius'') and popcorn, results from the rice plant's n ...

central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

and

southern Thailand Southern Thailand, Southern Siam or Tambralinga is a southernmost cultural region of Thailand, separated from Central Thailand region by the Kra Isthmus. Geography Southern Thailand is on the Malay Peninsula, with an area of around , bounde ...

and

sticky rice Glutinous rice (''Oryza sativa var. glutinosa''; also called sticky rice, sweet rice or waxy rice) is a type of rice grown mainly in Southeast and East Asia, and the northeastern regions of South Asia, which has opaque grains, very low amylose ...

northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a r ...

and northeastern Thailand, and with noodles such as (fermented rice noodles). Certain curries can also be eaten with ''roti'', the Thai version of the Indian-style fried

flat bread A flatbread is a bread made with flour; water, milk, yogurt, or other liquid; and salt, and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened, although some are leavened, such as pizza and pita bread. Flatbreads ...

from

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

called . or , meaning "curry-on-rice", is a traditional type of

fast food Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for commercial resale, with a strong priority placed on speed of service. It is a commercial term, limited to food sold in a restaurant or store with frozen, preheated or precooked ingredie ...

restaurant in Thailand which specialises in ready-made curries, and often several other dishes as well, served with rice. Their popularity in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

as a place for a quick lunchtime meal is in decline.

Typical ingredients

Curry paste

Thai curries are always made with a

. Common ingredients used in many Thai curry pastes are: *

Shrimp paste Shrimp paste or prawn sauce is a fermented condiment commonly used in Southeast Asian and Southern Chinese cuisines. It is primarily made from finely crushed shrimp or krill mixed with salt, and then fermented for several weeks. They are ei ...

Chillies Chili peppers (also chile, chile pepper, chilli pepper, or chilli), from Nahuatl '' chīlli'' (), are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for t ...

; depending on the curry these can be dried or fresh, red or green *

Onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...

s or

shallot The shallot is a botanical variety (a cultivar) of the onion. Until 2010, the (French red) shallot was classified as a separate species, ''Allium ascalonicum''. The taxon was synonymized with '' Allium cepa'' (the common onion) in 2010, as the ...

s *

Garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus '' Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Welsh onion and Chinese onion. It is native to South Asia, Central Asia and northeas ...

Lemongrass ''Cymbopogon'', also known as lemongrass, barbed wire grass, silky heads, Cochin grass, Malabar grass, oily heads, citronella grass or fever grass, is a genus of Asian, African, Australian, and tropical island plants in the grass family. Some ...

Galangal Galangal () is a common name for several tropical rhizomatous spices. Differentiation The word ''galangal'', or its variant ''galanga'' or archaically ''galingale'', can refer in common usage to the aromatic rhizome of any of four plant spec ...

Coriander Coriander (;

(cilantro) root Depending on the type of curry, additional ingredients for the paste can include spices such as

turmeric Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...

pepper Pepper or peppers may refer to: Food and spice * Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plant ** Black pepper * ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae ** Bell pepper ** Chili ...

, coriander seeds,

cardamom Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera '' Elettaria'' and '' Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They ar ...

pods, and

cumin Cumin ( or , or Article title
) (''Cuminum cyminum'') is a

fingerroot ''Boesenbergia rotunda'' (Thai: กระชาย ''krachai'', Khmer: ខ្ជាយ ''k'jeay'', Indonesian: temu kunci), commonly known as Chinese keys, fingerroot, lesser galangal or Chinese ginger, is a medicinal and culinary herb from Chi ...

. Ingredients are traditionally ground together with a

mortar and pestle Mortar and pestle is a set of two simple tools used from the Stone Age to the present day to prepare ingredients or substances by crushing and grinding them into a fine paste or powder in the kitchen, laboratory, and pharmacy. The ''mortar'' ( ...

, though increasingly with an electric

food processor A food processor is a kitchen appliance used to facilitate repetitive tasks in the preparation of food. Today, the term almost always refers to an electric-motor-driven appliance, although there are some manual devices also referred to as "food ...

. With many curries, the paste is first stir-fried in

cooking oil Cooking oil is plant, animal, or synthetic liquid fat used in frying, baking, and other types of cooking. It is also used in food preparation and flavoring not involving heat, such as salad dressings and bread dips, and may be called edible oil ...

before other components are added in to the dish. This allows certain flavours in the spices and other ingredients in the paste to develop that cannot be released at the lower temperature of boiling water. Both ''khrueang kaeng'' () and ''

nam phrik ''Nam phrik'' ( th, น้ำพริก, ) is a type of Thai spicy chili sauce typical of Thai cuisine. Usual ingredients for ''nam phrik'' type sauces are fresh or dry chilies, garlic, shallots, lime juice and often some kind of fish ...

kaeng'' () are used to describe "curry paste" in Thailand. The latter is sometimes even shortened to only ''phrik kaeng'' (). Thai curry pastes can be made at home from the bare ingredients, bought freshly made at markets in Thailand, or they can be had packaged at shops and supermarkets.

Main ingredients

Most Thai curries are made with meat, fish or

shellfish Shellfish is a colloquial and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater environ ...

as their main ingredient. Vegetables and fruit, but also certain tree leaves such as from the ''

Acacia pennata ''Senegalia pennata'' ( en, climbing wattle, vi, rau thối, th, ชะอม ''cha-om'', my, ဆူးပုပ်, ; km, ស្អំ; Meiteilon : ''khang'', Thadou-Kuki: khang-khu, Paite Language: Khangkhuh, Mizo: khanghu, Hmar: ''khanghm ...

'' (''cha-om'') and the '' Ficus virens'' (''phak lueat''), and flowers such as those of the ''

Sesbania grandiflora ''Sesbania grandiflora'', commonly known as vegetable hummingbird, katurai, agati, or West Indian pea, is a small leguminous tree native to Maritime Southeast Asia and Northern Australia. It has edible flowers and leaves commonly eaten in Sout ...

'' (''dok khae'') and

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", disting ...

(''hua pli''), can be added. Curries that contain mainly vegetables are, for example, ''kaeng liang'' (mixed vegetables) and ''kaeng nomai'' ( bamboo shoots). Ingredients were dictated by regional and seasonal availability: both

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved ...

and

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adu ...

(possibly first domesticated from wild

jungle fowl Junglefowl are the only four living species of bird from the genus ''Gallus'' in the bird order Galliformes, and occur in parts of South and Southeast Asia. They diverged from their common ancestor about 4–6 million years ago. Although origin ...

in what is now Thailand) are easily available, and so are many varieties of fish, and shellfish, both fresh water species from the many rivers, lakes and rice paddies, as well as salt water species from the

Andaman Sea The Andaman Sea (historically also known as the Burma Sea) is a marginal sea of the northeastern Indian Ocean bounded by the coastlines of Myanmar and Thailand along the Gulf of Martaban and west side of the Malay Peninsula, and separated fro ...

and the

Gulf of Thailand The Gulf of Thailand, also known as the Gulf of Siam, is a shallow inlet in the southwestern South China Sea, bounded between the southwestern shores of the Indochinese Peninsula and the northern half of the Malay Peninsula. It is around in le ...

. Other traditional ingredients in Thai curries include

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more ...

snail A snail is, in loose terms, a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class ...

s, wild birds and

game A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (suc ...

such as

Sambar deer The sambar (''Rusa unicolor'') is a large deer native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia that is listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List since 2008. Populations have declined substantially due to severe hunting, local ins ...

and

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species i ...

. Commonly used vegetables in curries are Thai eggplant (''makhuea pro''), yardlong beans (''thua fak yao''), and different types of squash and

pumpkin A pumpkin is a vernacular term for mature winter squash of species and varieties in the genus ''Cucurbita'' that has culinary and cultural significance but no agreed upon botanical or scientific meaning. The term ''pumpkin'' is sometimes use ...

s (''fak'').

Additional ingredients

Fresh

kaffir lime ''Citrus hystrix'', called the kaffir lime or makrut lime, (, ) is a citrus fruit native to tropical Southeast Asia. Its fruit and leaves are used in Southeast Asian cuisine, and its essential oil is used in perfumery. Its rind and crushed leav ...

leaves (''bai makrut''),

(''krachai''), or fresh herbs such as

Thai basil Thai basil ( th, โหระพา, , ISO: hōraphā, ; km, ជីរនាងវង, ''chi neang vorng''; vi, húng quế) called ''káu-chàn-thah'' () in Taiwan, is a type of basil native to Southeast Asia that has been cultivated to p ...

(''horapa'') are often added to Thai curries. Kaffir lime leaves and ''krachai'' are often cooked along with the other ingredients but fresh herbs such as Thai basil are nearly always added at the last moment to preserve the full taste and serve as a contrasting note to the flavours of a curry.

Fish sauce Fish sauce is a liquid condiment made from fish or krill that have been coated in salt and fermented for up to two years. It is used as a staple seasoning in East Asian cuisine and Southeast Asian cuisine, particularly Myanmar, Cambodia, Lao ...

is not only used when cooking the curry as a flavouring and for its salty taste, but it is usually also available at the table as a

condiment A condiment is a preparation that is added to food, typically after cooking, to impart a specific flavor, to enhance the flavor, or to complement the dish. A table condiment or table sauce is more specifically a condiment that is served separat ...

, mixed together with sliced green

bird's-eye chilli Bird's eye chili or Thai chili (Thai: ''prik ki nu'', พริกขี้หนู, literally "mouse dung chili" owing to its shape) is a chili pepper, a variety from the species ''Capsicum annuum'' native to Mexico. Cultivated across Southea ...

es for those that prefer their curries more salty and spicy. Sugar (traditionally

palm sugar Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed ...

) is used with curries that need to be sweetened. Besides lime juice,

tamarind Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabacea ...

juice can also see use in sour curries as the souring agent such as in ''kaeng som''. To achieve the most fragrance from the ingredients in a curry paste, the curry paste is often first fried together with vegetable oil or coconut oil that has separated from the coconut cream, before adding in the other ingredients.

Popular Thai curries

* (, it is known as " yellow curry" in the West) *, a curry of northern Thai cuisine * (, it is known as " green curry" in the West) * (, in addition to the curry paste, it uses whatever is available in nature) * (, it is known as " red curry" in the West) * (, every region has its own variety) * (; the name is supposedly derived from " mosalman", an archaic word for "Muslim") *'' Kaeng Ranjuan'' (a leftover food with spicy, sour, sweet, and salty beef curry seasoned with no more than fermented shrimp paste chili sauce.) * (a Burmese-influenced curry

noodle soup Noodle soup refers to a variety of soups with noodles and other ingredients served in a light broth. Noodle soup is a common dish across East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Himalayan states of South Asia. Various types of noodles are used, such a ...

from northern Thailand) * (the name possibly refers to the

n island state of

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the M ...

; this is a creamy and generally mild curry) * (, this Thai curry actually does not contain

ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is a herbaceous perennial which grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of ...

)

Gallery

File:Curry paste fried with coco cream.JPG, ''Phanaeng'' paste is fried together with coconut cream File:Kaeng phak lueat.JPG, ''Kaeng phak lueat'', a northern Thai curry with ficus leaves File:Thai style Otah.JPG, ''Ho mok pla'', steamed fish curry File:Khua kling.JPG, ''Khua kling'', an extremely spicy, dry fried curry from southern Thailand File:2014 1204 Khao Soi in Chiang Mai.jpg, ''Khao soi'', a curry

from northern Thailand File:Kaeng kradang.jpg, ''Kaeng kradang'', a pork curry

File:Tom jued tahoo.jpg, ''Kaeng chuet'', the curry that isn't curry, but actually a soup. File:Kaeng tai pla34.JPG, ''

Kaeng tai pla ''Kaeng tai pla'' ( th, แกงไตปลา, ) is a curry of southern Thai cuisine. Its name is derived from ''tai pla'', a salty sauce made from fermented fish entrails, which gives the curry a strong smell and flavor. This curry is usuall ...

'', made from fermented fish entrails File:Thai Seafood Curry.jpg, A seafood curry in the United States inspired by the flavors of Thai cuisine File:แกงฮังเล ที่ หลู้ลำ.jpg, ''

Kaeng hang le ''Kaeng hang le'' ( th, แกงฮังเล, ) is a rich Northern Thai pork curry. ''Kaeng hang le'' is very popular in Northern Thailand, well-known as a specialty of the region. The curry differs from traditional northern Thai curries in s ...

'', a northern Thai curry with Burmese influences

Sources and references

External links

Templeofthai.com: About Thai curry

highheelgourmet.com: Thai curry paste and ingredients that don't belong in them
{{Cuisine of Thailand Food paste