Massaman Beef Curry
Photo: danhusseyphoto / Pixabay
Southern Thailand's mellow, warmly spiced curry: beef braised in coconut milk with massaman paste, cinnamon and cardamom until tender, with potatoes, shallots and roasted peanuts, balanced with tamarind and palm sugar.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Start cooking the beef
Put the beef in a heavy pot with one can of coconut milk and the water. Bring to a gentle bubble. Cover and cook on low heat for about 1½ hours, until the beef starts to get tender.
Fry the curry paste
Spoon the thick cream from the top of the second can into a wok. Boil it, stirring, until the oil comes out of it. Add the massaman curry paste and fry, stirring, for about 5 minutes until it smells strong and gets darker.
Combine
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Add potatoes and shallots
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Balance
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Serve
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Start cooking the beef
Put the beef in a heavy pot with one can of coconut milk and the water. Bring to a gentle bubble. Cover and cook on low heat for about 1½ hours, until the beef starts to get tender.
Fry the curry paste
Spoon the thick cream from the top of the second can into a wok. Boil it, stirring, until the oil comes out of it. Add the massaman curry paste and fry, stirring, for about 5 minutes until it smells strong and gets darker.
Combine
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Add potatoes and shallots
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
Balance
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Serve
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The Story Behind the Dish
Massaman curry reflects centuries of trade at the court of Ayutthaya, where Persian and Muslim merchants brought dried spices like cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and nutmeg — rare in Thai cooking. The name is thought to come from an old word for "Muslim".
The result is a Thai curry with distinctly Middle Eastern and Indian warmth, typically made with beef or chicken rather than pork.
⭐ Why It's Famous
Mild and rich rather than fiery, it's often the first Thai curry people fall in love with.
💡 Fun Fact
Massaman appears in a famous 18th-century Thai poem attributed to Prince Itsarasunthon, praising the curry's fragrance.
Ayutthaya and southern Thailand
14.35°N, 100.57°E
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