This is as fiery as it gets for a Thai curry, it is way more spicy than most people can handle. It is also one of the simplest Thai curries to prepare, Jungle curries, or more accurately, forest curries, were traditionally made with whatever was to hand so your choice of meats and vegetables comes down to whatever you want in your curry. Although this was a dish most often cooked with wild boar it is far more common these days to see it cooked with pork or sometimes chicken. Of all the ingredients you might use I think it's worth getting some Thai basil which is sold in most supermarkets these days, fresh green peppercorns on the stalk are great but you would need to find those in an Asian shop. This curry is also cooked without coconut milk but I don't doubt that someone is going to try it with coconut milk:-) Update.( I've been told by quite a few customers this is what they are doing! ) I'll wait to see customer feedback on this one, it's certainly possible to make it even spicier but no point in doing so if only a few people are able to take it.
A note of caution. Although this is already a cooked curry paste it's still capable of inducing a sneezing attack or worse when the paste is being heated. For that reason, the paste is added to water and cooked rather than cooked directly as with most curry pastes. A cooker hood is also advisable. I just had someone* post a comment " Terrible methodology You're supposed to fry the spice paste first for starters." Nope, not unless you have a restaurant extractor fan at full blast, this is a real Jungle curry paste not one of those pretend ones. *( I could think of terms more suitable than "someone" but best not!) Suggested ingredients for Thai Jungle curry. Use around 500g of meat as well as vegetables. Note I have used aubergine below and after a few tests I think it tends to make the curry milder than it would be without it, probably due to the high water content. Personal preferences again, spice levels are so subjective. I would also add fish sauce and sugar to it but that is to my own taste.
This is how I have prepped my ingredients.
Add a spoonful of oil to a pan and cook the meat whilst stirring.
Jungle Curry is an especially fiery dish and far more spicy than most people would be able to handle. It’s also a very simple curry to make, normally served without coconut milk, however, some people might prefer to add coconut milk to the finished dish to calm it down a little!
Add a spoonful of oil to a pan and cook the meat whilst stirring
Add 300 ml of water to the pan.
Add the Jungle Curry paste to the pan.
Bring the contents of the pan to a simmer and cook for a few minutes.
Add vegetables to pan and cook for a few minutes more. This paste has a low salt content as it allows me to judge the heat better when making it, so you might want to test and adjust salt content to your own taste, fish sauce would be ideal.
Garnish with Thai basil if available and serve with rice.
Recipe Note
Can also be cooked with chicken or beef.
I use a mixture of vegetables when cooking this. Green beans, sweet corn, aubergine, or whatever is to hand. Some vegetables have the effect of absorbing spice and making this a much milder curry, aubergine is an example of that so bear that in mind when choosing your vegetables.
Thai basil is available from most supermarkets these days.
The fresh green peppercorns in the images above while not essential to the recipe do add a nice touch. They can usually be found in Asian shops or some shops also sell them pickled in brine. Nutrition data does not include rice.
Wow, incredible jungle curry. Have to admit I was a little scared when tasting while cooking as it was super hot however when it all came together with the vegetables and then the rice it was a real winner. Incredible depth of flavour and and a great taste. As suggested I added some fish sauce and a little sugar. Lovely!
David Williams
May 13, 2023
Your Jungle paste is absolutely brilliant – I love it. I have sought far and wide for such a paste and now I have found it. Thank you so much. Your recipes are wonderful with lots of alternatives and tips for personal taste. Keep up the good work.
This is the essential Thai dipping sauce you see all over Thailand. An absolute must for the Pad Kaprow recipe but also used to spice up almost any dish, particularly grilled meats or similar. And for many Thais they can't think of eating a fried egg without some Prik Naam Pla to top it. More than anything, it sums up the Thai food tastes of sour sweet and salty. Spicy? Of course that also depends on what chillies you use for this, and if you're prepared to do the extra work of separating out...
Probably one of Thailand's most famous dishes served on both humble street food stalls and the poshest of restaurants. This is a simple dish with simple ingredients and with little practice, a good restaurant standard meal can be made in minutes. In Thailand this is almost always served with a crispy fried egg with a runny yolk, and the technique for cooking the egg is a crucial part of making this dish. If a crispy fried egg is not your thing of course you can eat it without, says she sadly..
My first confession is that that I never thought I would be sitting here writing a recipe for a Thai Curry pie, but times change and we change with them or stagnate. My interest was sparked on my first trip back to Bangkok after the pandemic, chicken curry puffs have long been a popular Thai snack but savoury pies, usually steak and kidney, were very much something that was restricted to the Bangkok expat pub scene. All that had changed, bake shops were springing up outside the traditional to...
We never buy any other pastes than these
The are absolutely fantastic
They taste great
The service is brilliant and they are always prompt with your order
We cannot recommend these enough
A proper taste of Thailand 🇹🇭
Wanted to recreate real Thai curry flavours after travelling in Thailand, living somewhere where it’s difficult to get hold of Thai ingredients. These are delicious. My second order already.
Jeremy k
December 13, 2023
Wow, incredible jungle curry. Have to admit I was a little scared when tasting while cooking as it was super hot however when it all came together with the vegetables and then the rice it was a real winner. Incredible depth of flavour and and a great taste. As suggested I added some fish sauce and a little sugar. Lovely!