Thai Red Curry vs. Green Curry

TedTheewen

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I've been making a lot of Thai red curry lately. Today I made a giant batch and used up the last of the turkey. It was a major hit.

Now I want to move on to green curry. I've only had it a couple of times and that was a long while ago. I loved it.

Does anybody ever make this and does it always have pineapple in it? Each time I've had it there was pineapple included.
 

Mr Flibble

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Pineapple???

Can't say I've ever had it with pineapple in (restaurant or not) or my husband wouldn't eat it! I make it quite a lot though. Tis yummy.

I usually use a recipe very similar to this. It works without the lime leaves too, if you can't get any

ETA I'ev checked all my usual recipe places -- including a couple of Thai places even -- and not one has pineapple in Thai Green curry, so I think you're good not to include it :)
 
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Hoplite

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Never had green curry with pineapple. When I have it's typically been: green bell pepper, bamboo shoots, water chestnut. Sometimes spinach/water cress and mini-corn.
 

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Yeah, I'm curious to compare other Massaman curries at other local Thai places. The place near me appears to use regular potatoes instead of sweet potatoes.

I had it with pork.
 

CassandraW

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I made green curry in a cooking class in Thailand. No pineapple (nor have I ever had it in green curry anywhere). Veggies were Thai eggplant (the small round kind the size of golf balls, which have a rather different taste and texture than our kind, and I like them better -- once in a while I can find them in a market here in NYC) and thinly sliced peppers. Oh, and Thai basil (which again does not taste like the Italian type you typically buy here).

I have also seen green beans and zucchini added in NYC restaurants, but I have never seen any of them add pineapple, baby corn, spinach, or watercress to green curry.
 

RobLineberger

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Thai green curry is by far the hottest of the three "stoplight" curries, which is why it is sometimes called Jungle Curry. It can have up to 40% thai chilies as opposed to 11% as in a yellow or massaman curry.

Pineapple is often added because the sweetness hits your tastebuds before the heat, which gives your mouth time to blossom gradually into the heat rather than "Zing! Hi, I'm really hot!" I have used pineapple several times. It is an easy last-minute dish correction for heat and/or overuse of fish sauce. Put pineapple in near the end (taste first) because its enzymes will break down protein.

The Curry in a Hurry recipe is pretty good, standard, but I would strongly suggest adding a tablespoon of palm sugar to that if you follow it. I've never tried it, just tasting with my mind. The thai basil suggestion is great as a finish. Also cook green curry with lemongrass stalks and remove it, and for +1000 awesome put fresh keffir lime leaves in there.
 

PorterStarrByrd

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I really prefer a sweet-hot yellow, thick enough to stick to the other ingredients. I often include pineapple along with sugars-snap peas, mushrooms, carrots, small round onions, minnie corn cobs, green and red bell peppers and whatever else I am moved to toss in.

As far as I know it is not authentic anything except moose food.
 

CassandraW

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I don't like my curry sweet, and it can't get too hot for me. No pineapple or sugar for me.

It's a matter of personal taste, of course, so there's really no right or wrong. But FWIW, in the Thai cooking class I took in Thailand, green curry had no sweet elements in it. The owner of my favorite Thai place in my neighborhood said he makes it a bit sweeter because Americans like sweet. If you ask for dishes to be prepared "Thai style", they make them hotter and less sweet. I always ask for "Thai style." :D
 

sugarhit

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I live for pineapple in my green curry. I think it really rounds out the flavor nicely. I'm tempted to try sweet potato as well.
 

RedRajah

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Yeah, I'm curious to compare other Massaman curries at other local Thai places. The place near me appears to use regular potatoes instead of sweet potatoes.

I had it with pork.

Got to finally compare it at this aforementioned Other Thai place. While it lists using regular potatoes, I did seem to find smaller bits of sweet potato in it as well. No pineapple in this version and this time I had it with beef.

I actually think I liked this version better.