Masman Curry (Massaman Curry)

🧾 Ingredients

• 250 g chicken chunks (bite-size)
• 25–30 g Lobo Masman Curry Paste (about ½ pouch — save the rest)
• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• 240 ml coconut milk (1 small can)
• 1 cup water (240 ml) or milk
• 200 g potatoes (peeled, cut into chunks — about 1 medium or a handful of small ones)
• 1 onion (cut into wedges)
• 1 carrot (cut into chunks)
• 1–2 tbsp fish sauce (to taste)

Optional (recommended):

• 1–2 tsp sugar or palm sugar
• handful green peas
• handful spinach (added at the end)
• ¼ leek (sliced)
• handful Thai basil or cilantro (garnish)
• crushed peanuts (garnish)

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🍚 Rice

Cook jasmine rice separately in rice cooker.

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🔥 Instructions

1. Fry the curry paste

• Heat 1 tbsp neutral oil in a pot over medium heat
• Add Masman curry paste
• Stir and fry 1–2 minutes until fragrant

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2. Add chicken

• Add chicken chunks
• Stir to coat with the curry paste
• Cook 2–3 minutes until chicken is mostly done on the outside

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3. Add coconut milk

• Pour in coconut milk
• Stir well so the paste dissolves into the liquid
• Bring to a gentle bubble

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4. Add liquid

• Pour in water (or milk)
• Stir well to combine
• Bring to a gentle boil

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5. Add potatoes, onion, and carrot

• Add potato chunks
• Add onion wedges
• Add carrot chunks
• (Add sliced leek now if using)

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6. Simmer

• Reduce heat to medium-low
• Cover and simmer 15–20 minutes
• Check potatoes with a fork — they should be soft but not falling apart
• Stir occasionally so nothing sticks to the bottom

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7. Season

• Add fish sauce — start with 1 tbsp, taste, add more if needed
• Add sugar if using — just a little to balance the salt
• Stir and taste again

👉 Masman curry should be rich, savory, and slightly sweet with warm spice notes.

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8. Add quick-cooking vegs & finish

• Add green peas and/or spinach (if using)
• Stir and cook 1–2 more minutes until just wilted/soft
• Turn off heat
• Let rest 5 minutes
• Garnish with cilantro and crushed peanuts if you have them

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🍽️ Serve

• Ladle curry over jasmine rice
• Or serve rice on the side

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⚠️ Key Tips

• Masman curry is rich and mildly spiced — one of the mildest Thai curries
• Potatoes are essential — they thicken the curry naturally as they cooks
• Add fish sauce gradually — easy to over-salt
• Spinach and peas go in at the very end to keep their color and texture
• Crushed peanuts on top are a classic Masman touch

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🌱 Vegetarian Variation (Pulses instead of meat)

Replace the chicken with 200 g (drained weight) of any of these:

Pulse	Form	Prep	Notes
Mung beans	Dry (cheap)	Simmer 20–30 min in water first, then add to curry	Cooks down slightly, thickens the sauce
Red kidney beans	Canned	Drain and rinse, add at step 2 instead of chicken	Classic pairing with masman spices
Cannellini beans	Canned	Drain and rinse, add at step 2 instead of chicken	Creamy texture, mild flavor
Chickpeas	Canned	Drain and rinse, add at step 2 instead of chicken	Hearty, holds shape well

For dry mung beans: simmer them in water for 20–30 min until just tender before starting the curry. Then use them in place of chicken at step 2.

For canned beans: drain, rinse, and add at step 2. Stir gently — canned beans are soft and can break up.

Optional: you can still add 100–150 g chicken (or tofu) alongside the beans for a meat+bean version.

With mung beans the curry will be naturally thicker (they break down a bit). You may want slightly more water/coconut milk. With canned beans, the texture stays closer to the original.

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👍 Result

With chicken: Rich, warm, mildly spiced curry with peanut undertones, tender chicken, soft potatoes, and sweet carrots.

With pulses: Hearty, filling curry — beans absorb the masman spices beautifully. Comforting and great with rice.