massaman curry paste

One of my favourite Thai curry pastes. Not too spicy and is often considered a 'training' curry for children and those who like their food on the milder side. My favourite massaman curry use stewing steak and potatoes but you regularly see it on the menu in Thailand with chicken too. This is my finished version made with beef. 

This is based on the nicest recipe I've found online so far and made a great curry. Thank you taste.com.au! I've made a couple of small alterations along the way due to necessity but remained fairly close to the original.

Ingredients

8 dried long red chillies
1 teaspoon Thai shrimp paste
2 teaspoons whole coriander
2 teaspoons whole cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 whole cloves
1 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 stem lemon grass, trimmed, white part chopped
3cm piece galangal, peeled, chopped

1. Soak the chillies in recently boiled water for 20-30 minutes or until soft and pliable. Dran then cut into small pieces with scissors. 
2. In a dry frying pan quickly roast off the whole spices until their fragrance is released. This will take 30 seconds to a minute. Transfer to a pestle and mortar and grind to a fine powder. You could do this in a blender but I find you get a better finished product for dry spices in a pestle and mortar. 
3. Either continue with the pestle and mortar or transfer to a blender, combine the dry spices, shrimp paste and chillies with a tablespoon of water until you have a smooth paste.
4. Add the remaining ingredients one at a time, blending thoroughly after each addition until you have a thick paste. 
5. Use the paste immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 6 months. Curry paste also freezes fairly well so if you're in the mood why not make a larger batch for another day?

Here's a link to a great massaman curry recipe while I get around to posting my own version. Enjoy!