Thai Cooking Ingredients

A curry is a dish made with a mixture of herbs and spices to give it a highly distinctive flavor. In Thai cooking this mixture is most often added as a paste. Those who have the time to make homemade pastes from scratch by grinding herbs and whole spices in a mortar and pestle are lucky indeed. These produce sublime results. However in today's busy world, most Thai cooks purchase their curry paste at the local market to save time. These pastes are made locally and daily and are usually quite satisfactory.

Exported store bought varieties found on the shelves of shops overseas, often contain preservative so they can be kept unrefrigerated for long periods of time before sale or during the transport and distribution process.

SITCA's Thai curry pastes are made on our premises from fresh herbs and ground spices, which are then gently sauteed for up to 40 minutes to seal their flavor without our having to use preserving agents. We use enough chilies to make them mildly hot by Thai standards, (medium hot by Western ones.)

Thai herbs such as Galangal, Lemongrass and Basil, as well as Kaffir Lime Leaves, are essential to the preparation of authentic Thai cuisine. If you have the opportunity to buy these herbs fresh then do so. Fresh Thai herbs produce the finest dishes.

We start with fresh produce from farms and fields in the Southern part of the Kingdom, and allow the herbs to gently sun dry before placing them in a gas oven at low heat to complete the process.

Once opened, our packages of Thai herbs and mushrooms can be kept refrigerated and remain usable for months.

A TIP: When using dried Thai herbs, leaves and mushrooms in salads, allow them to soak in lukewarm water until soft before adding them to your dish.

Some Thai dishes call for the addition of small amounts of whole Thai spices such as anise or clove for flavor and for decorative effect.

However most Thai cooks who purchase whole spices, use them to make homemade Thai curry pastes. While time consuming, making your own paste can produce sublime results. Mortars and pestles are still in use by some, but an electric spice grinder is a satisfactory and practical option.

TIP: Control the hotness of your dishes by adding moderate amounts of chilies to the paste. Those who like their food hotter can always add more chilies at table. But if everyone likes their curries HOT, put the kick into the paste for the most satisfying results.