Written by: Rachel. Published: · Modified: · This post may contain affiliate links · 13 Comments
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Knowing this deficiency in my Thai food repertoire, I set out with the boyfriend as my eager accomplice one weekend on a panang curry expedition -- with the goal of trying as many plates of this curry as we could handle in one day! We tasted a lot of different panang curries - some were rich and peanuty with just meat coated in the mild curry sauce and others were thinner and more fragrant with meat, fresh vegetables, and Thai basil. All were delicious.
I came back home with the goal of recreating my favorite panang curry of the day, which was rich and peanuty yet surprisingly fragrant with the aroma of kaffir lime leaves. I started by dry roasting some peanuts and pounding them into our favorite brand of Thai panang curry paste.
Then I followed the general protocol for most Thai curries - heat the thicker part of the coconut milk over medium heat until it just starts to bubble and separate, add the curry paste, cook the meat, add more coconut milk and/or water, and adjust the seasonings. I made my curry with the traditional choice of beef, which required more water and a longer cooking time to become nice and tender. Once the beef was tender, I added a handful of thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves and that was it!
Our panang curry turned out wonderfully, so I have to say that our expedition to find, taste, and recreate a delicous panang curry was a success!
Recipe
Panang Curry with Beef | Gang Panang Neua | แกงพะแนงเนื้อ
5 from 3 votes
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Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons panang curry paste
- 1 tablespoon roasted peanuts
- 2 cups thinly sliced beef hanger steak is best in my experience
- ½ cup water
- 4 kaffir lime leaves
- fish sauce and sugar to taste
Instructions
Pound 1 tablespoon of roasted peanuts into 2 tablespoons of panang curry paste.
Scoop the top ⅓ cup of thicker coconut milk off the top of a newly opened can and into a large pan. Heat the coconut milk over medium heat until it starts to boil and separate.
Add the peanuty curry paste and stir into the coconut milk until its well incorporated. Then add your beef slices and coat them with the curry paste.
Add the rest of the coconut milk and water and let the beef cook until it's nice and tender. If the beef gets dry, add more water.
Once the beef is tender, add the kaffir lime leaves and season with fish sauce and sugar. I used about a teaspoon of sugar, but the curry paste I used had just the right amount of salt in it, so I didn't need fish sauce.
Serve with a sprinkling of kaffir lime leaves on top and jasmine rice on the side.
Notes
Recipe modified from RealThaiRecipes.com
More Thai Curry Recipes
- Vegetarian Yellow Curry | Gang Karee | แกงกะหรี่
- Green Curry with Chicken and Eggplant | Gaeng Keow Wan Gai | แกงเขียวหวานไก่
- Noodles with Fish Curry | Khanom Jeen Nam Ya | ขนมจีนน้ำยา
- Red Curry with Pumpkin | Gang Ped Faktong | แกงเผ็ดฟักทอง
Reader Interactions
Comments
Briona
Panang curry has ground peanuts, which isn t used in red or green curries. Panang is also less spicy but sweeter than the red curry. As for green curry, it is sweet but not as sweet as the Panang. It s spicier than Panang but not as spicy as the red curry. Furthermore, panang curry has the thickness that you won t find in the other curries due to the coconut cream.
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Солнышко!
Thai Panang curry has a lot of delicious spices and herbs, adding to its delicious flavor. Read below to find the recipe.
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Shannon
This panang curry is SPOT ON! So close to my fav I thought it was Wednesday! Really really good! I went to a local Asian market and got a really good red curry paste but forgot to get kaffir lime leaves 🙁 so I just used some fresh basil from my garden. It was sooo good. Thanks again for sharing.
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See AlsoSlow- Cooked Spiced QuincesRachel
So glad to hear it, Shannon!
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Shannon
CANNOT wait to make this tonight! Looks exactly like my favorite Panang Beef Curry from my favorite little Thai joint! She only makes it on Wednesdays though and sometimes I just can't wait. Thanks for sharing.
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Rachel
Thanks, Chelsea! I love the photo of your son eating his curry with gusto 🙂 Not many children are so adventurous!
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Chelsea
Excellent recipe! I found it on Pinterest and made it tonight! I linked back to it here: http://stanwoodtoseoul.blogspot.com/2012/01/panang-curry-with-beef.html
I never make Thai food at home, so this was great! Thanks!Reply
Rachel
Hi Caroline - Our favorite curry pastes are the Mae Anong brand and it looks like some are vegetarian-friendly and some are not. The one I linked to above contains shrimp paste, but there's another panang curry paste in a purple bag that just lists red chili, onion, garlic, galanga, lemongrass, kaffir peel, and salt as ingredients. I can find this one at local Thai markets, but it can also be found online (http://www.tastepadthai.com/pacupamaean.html). They also have red, green, and yellow versions that appear to be vegetarian-friendly.
Hope this helps and good luck!Reply
Caroline
Hi Rachel-
I used to buy my curry pastes from the Asian markets until I met my boyfriend who is vegetarian (no seafood). Are you or your boyfriend familiar with any tasty (although less authentic) vegetarian curry pastes I can try out at home?
I would greatly appreciate suggestions as I have been disappointed with the ones I have tried so far.Reply
Errika
Panang curry is my favorite. I make a dish similiar to this only add copious amounts of ginger. I just love the addition of kaffir lime to any curry. Super delicious. I'm going to try your ground peanut method next time instead of using peanutbutter.
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sara
This curry looks fabulous! Super flavorful...definitely have to try it!
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Jo@jocooks
What a beautiful curry. I love Thai food and I miss it, even since I moved we hardly ever go to Thai restaurants. I guess the next best thing would be to try it myself. Thanks for the recipe.
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JL
Great authentic recipe - defiantly try this if you like Thai curries!
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