5 Powerful Memories That Still Live in Mom’s Green Curry Paste (And How I Recreate It from Scratch)
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1. Quick Thai Green Curry Paste from Scratch Starts in the Backyard
If you love bold, comforting Thai dishes, don’t miss my full Pad Kra Pao recipe with Thai holy basil stir-fry — it’s the kind of meal that tastes like home.
Quick Thai green curry paste from scratch isn’t really about speed—it’s about instinct. When I was a child growing up in the Thai countryside, everything we needed for curry was quite literally growing outside the house.
My mom never wrote a recipe down. Why would she? The lemongrass grew wild behind the chicken coop. The galangal was a knotted root she pulled up once a month. Makrut lime leaves? Everywhere. You could reach out from the kitchen window and grab a handful.
🛍️ Amazon-Highlightable Kitchen Tools:
- ✅ Stone mortar and pestle
- ✅ Rice Cooker
- ✅ Nonstick wok with lid
- ✅ Clay Pot for Rice or Curry
- ✅ Stainless Steel Saucepan
- ✅ Electric Wok
Mom’s curry paste was fresh, fiery, fragrant—and personal. She’d get up at dawn (so early it hurt), and by the time I rubbed the sleep from my eyes, the sound of her pounding chilies in a mortar would echo from the kitchen.
Thud. Thud. Pause. Thud.
It was the heartbeat of our home.
Now, when I stand in my apartment kitchen, trying to recreate her green curry paste from scratch, I don’t just want flavor. I want her rhythm. I want the way she turned everyday plants into something unforgettable.
2. Traditional Thai Curry Paste Ingredients Were Always Just Around
When people talk about traditional Thai curry paste ingredients, they often think exotic and hard-to-find. But not for us. We had them all.
Let me tell you what made her curry truly sing:
- Lemongrass – Aromatic, earthy, and sharp. Mom’s stalks were thick and juicy—none of that dry, brittle stuff.
- Galangal – Like ginger’s wilder cousin. Mom said it added a “kick like your older sister.”
- Makrut lime zest – So citrusy and bright it could wake you up better than coffee.
- Garlic and shallots – Pounded by hand, because “the food tastes what your hands feel,” she’d say.
- Green chilies – Lots. My mom liked her curry bold. Even my dad, a spice veteran, would sweat at the table.
- Thai basil – We grew it between the banana trees. She said it “kept the curry green and the heart happy.”
- Shrimp paste (gapi) – Fermented and pungent. Essential. Amazon’s Thai Kitchen shrimp paste is close, but nothing beats the kind wrapped in banana leaves at the local market.
When she made curry paste, she’d make enough to last weeks—kept in an old glass jar in the fridge, which somehow always had the smell of garlic and herbs.
🛍️ Amazon-Highlightable Kitchen Tools:
- ✅ Stone mortar and pestle
- ✅ Rice Cooker
- ✅ Nonstick wok with lid
- ✅ Clay Pot for Rice or Curry
- ✅ Stainless Steel Saucepan
- ✅ Electric Wok
3. Authentic Thai Green Curry Recipe Isn’t Just About Heat—It’s About Balance
What made Mom’s authentic Thai green curry recipe so good wasn’t how spicy it was—it was how alive it felt. There was brightness from herbs, creaminess from fresh coconut milk, and warmth from spices that lingered just long enough.
And she balanced it like she did life—with instinct and care.
She didn’t cook with timers. She cooked with sound, smell, and feel.
She’d say, “When the coconut oil breaks from the cream, now you add the paste.”
I had no idea what that meant at age 10. Now, I know that’s the split-second when the aroma blooms, and you know it’s real.
Today, I use canned coconut milk (Aroy-D is my go-to from Amazon) and I miss the grating, the pressing, the ritual. But when I stir in my homemade paste and see the oil begin to shine on top, I remember her hands, her rhythm, and the joy that came from a simple curry on a quiet day.
4. Homemade Green Curry with Coconut Milk That Still Feels Like a Hug
Looking for a pan that handles stir-fries and eggs like a pro? Here’s my review of the best nonstick wok for eggs, tested and loved in my home kitchen.
When I first tried making homemade green curry with coconut milk in my own kitchen, it tasted… fine.
But not like hers.
I forgot to toast the coriander. I didn’t soak the chilies long enough. I didn’t pound the paste—I blended it. She’d probably call me lazy. But she’d still smile and eat it anyway.
Eventually, I found my own rhythm.
I now make small batches of paste and keep it in the freezer. When I’m tired or homesick or just need a meal that feels like home, I pull it out, fry it gently in a nonstick wok with lid (a sturdy one from Amazon—nothing fancy), pour in the coconut milk, and let the smell transport me.
I close my eyes and suddenly, I’m 8 years old again, stealing spoonfuls from the pot while Mom “doesn’t notice.”
Free PDF Popular Thai Stir-Fry Menu Ideas Download Here :
Learn 1 Stir-Fry Sauce Base That Most Thai Restaurants and Thai Families Use to Combine Unlimited Stir-Fry At Home
🛍️ Amazon-Highlightable Kitchen Tools:
- ✅ Stone mortar and pestle
- ✅ Rice Cooker
- ✅ Nonstick wok with lid
- ✅ Clay Pot for Rice or Curry
- ✅ Stainless Steel Saucepan
- ✅ Electric Wok
5. Thai Basil Green Curry Chicken Is My Favorite Way to Miss Her
Whenever I cook Thai basil green curry chicken, I feel like I’m having a conversation with my mother.
I hear her voice:
“Add the eggplants now.”
“Not too much fish sauce—you’re not making soup.”
“Smell that? That’s real green curry.”
I make it her way—with tender chicken thighs, halved Thai eggplants, red spur chilies for color, and a mountain of fresh Thai basil tossed in just before serving.
And when I eat it, I always save a bite for her.
Even though she’s not here anymore.
I hope, wherever she is, she can still smell my kitchen.
🥥 Recipe: Green Curry Paste from Scratch (Small Batch)
✅ Ingredients:
- Green bird’s eye chilies – 60g
- Sliced green spur chilies – 40g
- Fresh Thai basil leaves – 1 handful
- Salt – 1½ tsp
- Sliced galangal – 2 tsp
- Sliced lemongrass – 2 tsp
- Makrut lime peel – 1 tsp
- Chopped coriander roots – 2 tsp
- Black peppercorns – 10
- Sliced shallots – 80g
- Sliced garlic – 40g
- Ground coriander (toasted) – 1½ tbsp
- Ground cumin (toasted) – 1½ tsp
- Shrimp paste (gapi) – 2 tsp
For the vegetarian version: skip shrimp paste.
🥣 Instructions:
- Pound the chilies and salt into a paste using a stone mortar and pestle (you can grab one on Amazon that’s surprisingly authentic).
- Add galangal, lemongrass, makrut peel, coriander root, and peppercorns. Continue pounding.
- Add shallots, garlic, coriander, cumin, and shrimp paste. Pound until smooth and fragrant.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Keeps for up to 1 month.
🛍️ Amazon-Highlightable Kitchen Tools:
- ✅ Stone mortar and pestle
- ✅ Rice Cooker
- ✅ Nonstick wok with lid
- ✅ Clay Pot for Rice or Curry
- ✅ Stainless Steel Saucepan
- ✅ Electric Wok
🍛 Green Curry Chicken (Gaeng Keow Wan Gai)
Ingredients:
- Chicken (thighs or breast) – 300g
- Green curry paste – 4 tbsp
- Thai eggplants – 8
- Red spur chilies – 2
- Green chilies – 2
- Makrut lime leaves – 8–9
- Thai basil – 1 cup
- Fish sauce – 2 tbsp
- Palm sugar – 1 tbsp
- Coconut milk – 1 liter (boxed version like ChaoKoh or Aroy-D works well)
🔥 Instructions:
- In a wok, heat the thick part of coconut milk on medium. Add curry paste. Stir until fragrant and oily.
- Add chicken. Stir-fry until cooked on the outside.
- Tear in lime leaves. Add the rest of the coconut milk. Let it simmer.
- Add eggplants. When nearly soft, add red and green chilies.
- Season with fish sauce and palm sugar.
- Finish with fresh Thai basil leaves. Serve hot with jasmine rice.
🌱 A Vegan Thai Green Curry Recipe That Even My Meat-Loving Dad Would’ve Loved
Here’s the beautiful thing about authentic Thai green curry recipe traditions: they’re adaptable. When I first tried making green curry for a vegan friend, I thought it would feel like a compromise.
No shrimp paste? No fish sauce? No chicken?
But the truth? It was absolutely delicious.
In fact, for a fully plant-based Thai green curry, all you have to do is skip the shrimp paste in the curry paste. That’s it. Everything else—the lemongrass, galangal, coriander root, green chilies, Thai basil—they’re all naturally vegan. And just like that, your quick Thai green curry paste from scratch transforms into a kind, inclusive, deeply flavorful dish for everyone.
🥬 Vegan Green Curry Paste (Animal-Free Version)
This version uses the same method and ingredients as Mom’s traditional curry paste—just leave out the shrimp paste (กะปิ). Trust me, the flavor will still be bold and beautiful.
✨ Pro tip: Add an extra pinch of salt or a few fermented soybeans for that umami edge.
🧄 Vegan Thai Green Curry with Tofu and Vegetables
Here’s my go-to homemade green curry with coconut milk when I’m cooking for vegan friends—or just craving something lighter but still satisfying.
🥥 Ingredients:
- 4 tbsp vegan green curry paste
- 400 ml full-fat coconut milk
- 200 ml water or veggie stock
- 1 block firm tofu, cubed
- 1 cup baby eggplant or Thai eggplant
- 1/2 cup bamboo shoots
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 handful fresh Thai basil leaves
- 1 tbsp soy sauce (instead of fish sauce)
- 1/2 tbsp palm sugar or coconut sugar
- 4-5 torn makrut lime leaves
🔥 Instructions:
- Heat the thick part of coconut milk in a nonstick wok with lid over medium heat. Add curry paste and stir until fragrant.
- Add tofu cubes and toss gently in the curry paste.
- Pour in the rest of the coconut milk and water.
- Add eggplant, bamboo shoots, and bell pepper. Simmer until vegetables are just tender.
- Season with soy sauce and palm sugar. Taste and adjust.
- Turn off the heat and stir in Thai basil and lime leaves.
- Serve hot with steamed jasmine rice or sticky rice for a full Thai vegan meal.
🌿 Bonus Tips for Making the Best Vegan Curry:
- Use Thai basil generously — it brings the signature aroma.
- Choose a good full-fat coconut milk brand (Aroy-D or Chaokoh from Amazon are both great).
- Don’t skip the lime leaves — they add floral, citrusy depth even without fish sauce.
- Add seasonal vegetables like zucchini, green beans, or pumpkin to make it your own.
This vegan Thai basil green curry chicken (well, tofu, in this case) tastes just as comforting, just as aromatic, and just as deeply Thai — even without any animal products.
I like to think Mom would’ve been proud that her recipe could stretch so far, feed so many, and still carry her signature soul.
Free PDF Popular Thai Stir-Fry Menu Ideas Download Here :
Learn 1 Stir-Fry Sauce Base That Most Thai Restaurants and Thai Families Use to Combine Unlimited Stir-Fry At Home
