Masaman is a Thai-Muslim influenced. It is based on a combination of spices and peanuts. It's becoming one of the most popular curry because of the unique taste and mild spice. It's not as easy to find as Red or green curry because it is a little more complicated to prepare but once cooked, it can be kept in the fridge for days and taste even better like stew. It has a quite sweet taste with a bit of sour from tamarind juice which goes really well with the spicy aroma. It is best cooked with chicken or beef.
Masaman paste
Chilli, Shallot, Galangal, Lemmgrass, Shrimp Paste, Salt, Spices and vegetable oil.
Ingredients
500gram beef or chicken, 400 ml coconut milk, peanut, fish sauce, onion, palm sugar, potato and 3 tbsp tamarind juice.
Directions
Marinate beef/chicken in diluted coconut milk for 30 minutes, then simmer until tender. Boil potato partly so when you finish preparing it will be cooked thoroughly and not over cooked your curry. Heat coconut milk over medium heat until oil appears on top. Add Massaman paste and mixed until fragrant. Add partly cooked potato, peanuts and meat then onion. Season to taste with palm sugar, fish sauce and tamarind juice. Garnish with bay leaves and roasted cardamom.
Tips
For vegetarian, tofu can be a substitute but remember to cook it last. All type of vegetables can be used such as pumpkin, potato or soybean. Red meat, fish balls and chicken work very well for red curry. Crisp eggplant can be substitute with any type of eggplant. Bamboo shoots are also delicious. All the essentials are already in the paste. Soya milk can be used instead of coconut milk.
