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Bowl of homemade Thai yellow curry paste with roasted aromatics and garlic in a golden curry sauce

Thai Yellow Curry Paste with Roasted Aromatics and Garlic

Thai yellow curry paste is a smooth, concentrated homemade curry base with roasted aromatics, warm spices, and balanced chili flavor. It is perfect for creating flavorful curry dishes with a fresh, deeply savory foundation.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings: 2 servings
Course: Sauce
Cuisine: Thai-Inspired
Calories: 139
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Roasted Aromatics
  • 4 large shallots
  • 6 tablespoons avocado oil
  • 4 large heads of garlic (not individual cloves – full heads of garlic)
  • 6-inch piece of fresh ginger
Curry Paste
  • 5-20 whole dried Thai chili peppers
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
  • 2-3 tablespoons turmeric
  • 2-3 tablespoons mild curry powder
  • 2 teaspoons roasted ground coriander
  • 3 tablespoons lemongrass paste
  • 1/4 cup packed cilantro leaves and stems

Method
 

Preparation
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
  2. Peel the shallots, drizzle them with 2 tablespoons of oil, and wrap them in foil. Peel the ginger, slice it thinly, arrange it in a single layer, coat with 2 tablespoons of oil, and wrap in foil.
  3. Remove the outer paper from the garlic heads. Slice off the pointed tops to expose the cloves, drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil, and wrap each head in foil.
  4. Place all foil-wrapped aromatics on a baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.
Cooking
  1. Remove the ginger once softened. Raise the oven temperature to 400°F (205°C) and continue roasting the shallots and garlic for 30 minutes, until browned and fragrant.
  2. Allow the roasted aromatics to cool, then squeeze the garlic cloves from their skins.
  3. Pour boiling water over the dried Thai chili peppers and soak for 15 minutes. Drain the water.
Blending
  1. Add the roasted aromatics, rehydrated chilies, salt, turmeric, curry powder, coriander, lemongrass paste, and cilantro to a food processor or powerful blender.
  2. Pulse or blend until the curry paste reaches the desired consistency.
  3. Use the finished paste as needed for curry recipes.

Notes

This makes 4 batches of homemade curry. YUM! For a more traditional Thai yellow curry paste that features a few harder-to-find but true to actual curry ingredients, check out this recipe.