Traditionally, all Thai curries were made with the same ingredients except for one thing: the chilies. Red curry was made with several red chilies for a fiery hot dish, while green curry was made with green chilies and yellow curry was made with yellow chilies. In Thailand, these chilies have slightly different taste characteristics in addition to their colour. Over time, however, other ingredients have been added to the curry pastes to enhance each recipe, making them more distinct from one another. Although all three colours may be spicy-hot depending on the chef, normally green is the mildest and red the hottest with yellow falling somewhere in between.
Green Curry
Green curry is considered the most popular curry in Thai cuisine. The green colour has become more vibrant over the years with the addition of fresh coriander (cilantro), lime leaf and peel, and basil. These herbs are combined with fresh green chilies and several other ingredients such as lemongrass, fish sauce, garlic, ginger, and shallots.
Red Curry
Red curry paste is found in a wide range of dishes with up to 20 red chilies to give it that red colour and make it spicy. How ever using milder chilli powder or long red peppers can be used to decrease the heat but retain the red colour.
Yellow Curry
Yellow curry has a mild, somewhat sweet taste with a little bit of spice. In addition to the turmeric, curry powder is pounded combined with coriander seeds, cumin, lemongrass, galangal or ginger, garlic, and yellow or red chili. The paste is often combined with coconut milk and used in fish stews.
Massaman Curry
One of the more unique Thai curries thanks to Persian influence. It originated in the south of Thailand near the border of Malaysia and is a thick sauce with a mild, slightly sweet flavour. Massaman curry dishes distinguish themselves by the inclusion of several whole spices such as star anise, cloves and cardamon otherwise uncommon in a Thai curry and often contain potatoes.
Penang Curry
It is named after the island off the west coast of Malaysia where it originated. Very similar to red curry but less spicy and the addition of toasted peanuts give it a sweeter taste.
Jungle Curry
Unlike most Thai curries, jungle curry doesn’t contain any coconut due to coconut not being found in the forested areas of Northern Thailand. Instead it is a highly spiced and watery curry with flavours of Kaffir Lime, Lemongrass, Peppercorn, Galangal, Chilli and Garlic.
