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Thai Curry and Chili Pastes


rotuts

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In my town there is a new , outstanding Thai Restaurant

 

https://www.ricenoodlethaieatery.com

 

so Ive been interested in the various pastes curry pastes and chilli pastes available to me

 

Maesri is a brand that I can get in Alston , Ranch 88 , near BOS.  nice parking on Sunday morning

 

http://www.maesribrand.com/Tubs.html

 

and 

 

http://www.maesribrand.com/Glassjars.html

 

I do know there is May Ploy and Mae Anong etc

 

which is better or the best is not my concern

 

I do know that the " Tubs " are much better than the little cans

 

as its possible the little cans get heated to a  higher temp etc

 

so here is my question :

 

Id likie to find a reliable site on the web that fairly discusses the different curry types and chili types

 

I do have " Thai Food " 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Thai-Food-David-Thompson/dp/1580084621

 

I might dust it off !

 

Id like to learn a bit about the different types , independently of the brand I have , as there will be 

 

 Masaman , Kaeng etc

 

thanks for your help

 

and BTW :

 

this is what I have to work with so far :

 

A.thumb.jpg.eeeffc136f0b445ac60392ca7c76fa6d.jpg

 

and Im looking foreword to it

 

with your help 

 

suprise.gif.48581d02fb1377e21d1e5e410fd5319a.gif

Edited by rotuts (log)
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to be fair , I was asking Google the wrong question 

 

Ive found some sites that were helpful to me

 

so id though id save you some time if you are interested in this topic :

 

https://www.templeofthai.com/cooking/about_thai_curry.php

 

you can click on their links and get even more depth

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_curry

 

nice intoduction

 

 

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We have had the discussion. The term is wide and deep. When able I prefer to use M & P to grind,/pound. The cans work  if using coconut  milk - brings it together.  

 One example.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

especialy if f you are using coconut milk wjoch mellows things out. 

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I'm not a fan of Maesri in the tub - it tastes mostly of salt.  The best premade pastes I've had were Nittiya, which must be kept refrigerated.  Next to that, I like the Maesri in the "cat food" can - since it's canned, they don't need to use as much salt to keep it shelf stable.

 

I'm a fan of hot-thai-kitchen.com and her YouTube site... very informative...

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P.S.:

 

thanks to @KennethT

 

keen  insight

 

I looked at the NaCl content of one of the ' tubs ' 

 

and the news was not good :  600 mg / 2 Tablespoons.

 

Im already  a bit short of breath !

 

Ill look into the cans tomorrow

 

http://www.maesribrand.com

 

does not list ingredients , at least I could nt fine it

 

Time for some M.R. !

Edited by rotuts (log)
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Curry paste isn't that hard to make but I usually buy it. Even the major supermarkets herein Australia have several brands of the major varieties, Massaman, yellow, green, and red. You can also get pre-jarred simmer sauces, if you can't manage to mix paste with coconut milk.

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It's almost never bad to feed someone.

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This is a really dumb question, but I'm curious.

 

The pastes come in a bag inside the tub.  When you open the bag do you dump it in the tub?  I kept mine in the bag and smooshed it back into the tub.  Did I do it wrong?

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if I end u[p using these bags , in spite of the NaCl

 

I plan to cut the bag open just a bit at the top 

 

use what I use

 

then place that bag , flat , in a larger VacBag  , then vac and freeze

 

Ill open the vac'd bag and take out what I need from the Fz paste , then re-seal in that same vac BAG

 

Thats the current plan.   Im quite the Oriental Condiment PacRat.  I must have thrown out a zillion jars of

 

mighty interesting stuff that was years old from my refrig.  Im trying a new plan

 

later today , when two Oriental Markets in my area open, Ill get a couple of those ' cat food ' cans

 

and compare them to the bags.  its been a disappointment that the tubs have so much salt.

 

I should have realized this , but did not.

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4 minutes ago, Shelby said:

This is a really dumb question, but I'm curious.

 

The pastes come in a bag inside the tub.  When you open the bag do you dump it in the tub?  I kept mine in the bag and smooshed it back into the tub.  Did I do it wrong?

That's what I would do....  I think they put the bag in a tub for shelf presentation. Keeping it in the bag will keep it fresher longer.

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1 minute ago, rotuts said:

if I end u[p using these bags , in spite of the NaCl

 

I plan to cut the bag open just a bit at the top 

 

use what I use

 

then place that bag , flat , in a larger VacBag  , then vac and freeze

 

Ill open the vac'd bag and take out what I need from the Fz paste , then re-seal in that same vac BAG

 

Thats the current plan.   Im quite the Oriental Condiment PacRat.  I must have thrown out a zillion jars of

 

mighty interesting stuff that was years old from my refrig.  Im trying a new plan

 

later today , when two Oriental Markets in my area open, Ill get a couple of those ' cat food ' cans

 

and compare them to the bags.  its been a disappointment that the tubs have so much salt.

 

I should have realized this , but did not.

I looked yesterday at my cat food cans... they certainly are not salt free... but, I don't think they taste as salty as the shelf stable ones, plus, I think the taste is fresher.  Also, keep in mind that most of the curry pastes that I've seen don't include shrimp paste - so you typically need to add a bit yourself.  Also, a panang curry (which I love) typically has ground peanuts, which are also not included in the pastes, so that has to be added also.

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experiments continue :  Thai Curry Paste : Salt 

 

ThaiSalt.thumb.jpg.1181a2eb9f78991d38f5d7f76910dfec.jpg

 

the cans were $ 1.65 each.   they may be cheaper at the Ranch 88.  the tubs were $ 3.99

 

the items based on  their analysis are identical :  700 mg NaCl for the Massaman , and 570 mg for the Panag.  every thing else mentioned at the back

 

is identical .   Coast : cans are 45 % more expensive !

 

Ill open one or the other later today and at some to some rice Im going to have for dinner via the Rice-in-the-Bowl  iPot method.

 

and report back on taste , pre-cooking.

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It was my understudying way back when that the cans were processes at a high temp , thus the tubs had a more vibrant flavor.

 

and how cool having several tubs in the back your your refrigerator !  remember Im an Oriental Jar PacRat !  I discard the

 

two to more than two tubs in the back of my refrigerator when I got interested in this project.  I didn't look at the sell-by date , because ....

 

here are the two Maaman curry pastes :

 

532427947_MC1.thumb.jpg.9fb9d82da057d3871365e8b2ee76d968.jpg

 

and the bag opened a bit and re-sealed in a VacBag and now in the freezer :

 

1052018878_MC2.thumb.jpg.9224d54028e13a4e7e4a0a4a289e576f.jpg

 

the plan being to open the secondary bag , and take out some of the paste to use from the primary bag , reseal the secondary bag and pop it back in the freezer.

 

Im no expert , but both pastes were 1 ) delicious and 2 ) identical to my palate , both in salt and flavor.

 

as Im not going to Run a large Thai Restaurant , it looking like it makes more sense to use the little cans , and come up w a freezing / vac plan for the smaller quantity

 

Ill taste the two Panang's  at a later date.

 

50 years from now , their may be some of the flat-bagged curry paste still in the freezer !.   I just wont be here to gloat at the tremendous savings I incurred !

 

Ill go back to Ranch 88 or Formosa Market * near by and see what canned flavors they have.

 

I wonder who I can dump some paste on , Vac's and frozen of course .

 

suprise.gif.eb12848c432cf2313b5ede9c555c3cf2.gif

 

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Edited by rotuts (log)
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The only curry paste I have used (and occasionally do when I do not feel like making my own) is a brand called "Thai Kitchen" - I prefer the red curry paste, but they also sell Yellow and Green.

 

Intense stuff, very fragrant - quite good.

 

 

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2 minutes ago, TicTac said:

The only curry paste I have used (and occasionally do when I do not feel like making my own) is a brand called "Thai Kitchen" - I prefer the red curry paste, but they also sell Yellow and Green.

 

Intense stuff, very fragrant - quite good.

 

 

 

I agree, Thai Kitchen is very good and one I always used until I tried Blue Dragon which is the one I always use now.  When I open a jar, I put the rest in ice cube trays, measured by the tablespoon and frozen.

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22 hours ago, ElsieD said:

 

I agree, Thai Kitchen is very good and one I always used until I tried Blue Dragon which is the one I always use now.  When I open a jar, I put the rest in ice cube trays, measured by the tablespoon and frozen.

 

I have seen Blue Dragon at Organic Garage - will try it next time (in fact, now!) I am in need of a resupply.

 

Thanks.

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