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Chicken Massaman Curry is one of the most delicious, savory Thai curry dishes. With chicken and potatoes cooked into a sweet, slightly spicy sauce, it’s a flavor explosion!
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What is Massaman Curry?
Chicken Massaman Curry is one of my favorite dishes! It is a mild, savory, and slightly sweet curry with the fragrant spice undertones of cumin, cardamom, and cinnamon. It typically isn’t a spicy curry, but like most curries, it is easy to adjust the spice level.
The name itself can be spelled a few different ways: Massaman, Masuman, Masumun, Matsaman. No matter how you spell it, the delicious Thai dish tastes the same. I came up with my own version of this tasty Thai cuisine after a girls’ night to our favorite restaurant. My husband helped himself to my leftovers and was hooked. Making your own curry is easy, fun, and rewarding as well as economical.
How to Make Massaman Curry
1. Start with the right Massaman Curry Paste. Massaman Curry Paste is the key to making this recipe successful, it’s the one thing you really don’t want to leave out. Don’t substitute for another curry paste like yellow curry or red curry paste . Using store-bought curry paste is so much easier than trying to make your own paste from scratch. Curry paste is very thick and similar to the consistency of tomato paste. It is quite fragrant and will fill up the room with a strong, yet delicious smelling aroma. Don’t worry, once you stir in the coconut milk, it will mellow out.
You can find Massaman curry paste at most Asian Markets and even at many specialty grocery stores. We use the Maesri brand because it is what’s available at the Asian Market closest to us, but I know there are other brands available. You can’t really go wrong. The kind we use is usually in a small, yellow 4 ounce. can (pictured). It can also sometimes be found in lidded plastic or paper containers, glass jars, or vacuum-sealed packages. You can also find it on Amazon, using the link above.
2. Heat vegetable oil in an extra large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in curry paste; cook and stir for about 2-3 minutes. This is strong, make sure your windows are open and a fan is blowing.
3. Add 1 can coconut milk (shake well and open from the bottom of the can) and stir until well blended. Add ginger, cilantro, sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, and Worcestershire. Bring to a boil.
4. Add thinly sliced onion and thinly sliced chicken. A tip here is to use slightly frozen chicken to get really thin slices. Reduce to a simmer. When chicken is white and cooked through (about 5 min or so) add another can of coconut milk and bring back to a boil.
5. Add remaining ingredients (except for the rice) and stir until everything is well mixed. Cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are no longer crunchy in the middle. See our tip in the recipe notes for pre-cooking the potatoes. Serve hot over Jasmine rice and garnish with extra cilantro and/or limes if desired.
Tips For Making Chicken Massaman Curry
Boil potatoes ahead. It’s not a bad idea to boil your potatoes for three-four minutes before adding them to your curry. This is a great trick for when you are in a hurry and just trying to get dinner on the table and don’t want to wait for the potatoes to soften in the curry sauce.
Soften vegetables in the sauce. If you are adding extra vegetables, allow the vegetables to soften in the sauce for optimal flavor. If you are in a hurry, stir-fry the veggies until tender before adding to the sauce.
Shake the coconut milk really well before opening. If not, it can come out in one big clump. You can also avoid this by opening the coconut milk can from the bottom.
Adjust spiciness to your preference. Make it as spicy or as mild as you would like! Add sriracha while cooking, or serve it on the side if people prefer different spice levels.
Use soy sauce. Instead of adding salt (if needed), try adding soy sauce. It gives you the salty flavor while also deepening the overall flavor of the dish.
Don’t forget the limes! Adding a squeeze of fresh lime right before serving ties all those delicious flavors together. This gives it a little extra boost over other Massaman curry recipes I have had.
Frequently Asked Questions
Massaman curry is very sweet due to the coconut milk and nutty due to the peanut butter. If you like sweeter curries, then you will love this one!
Massaman curry is mild, sweet, and full of Indian spices like cinnamon and cardamom.
The best rice to use with any curry is Jasmine rice. It is a long-grain, dry rice that goes well with every Thai dish. It is more fragrant than most varieties, which is why it is also known as “aromatic rice”. Brown Jasmine rice can also be used. Basmati rice is a common substitute for Jasmine rice as well. If you can’t find any of these varieties, you can just use a simple, long-grain, white rice.
Yes! This chicken massaman curry recipe freezes beautifully. Just make sure to freeze it on its own without rice (the rice won’t freeze as well and will just absorb all the sauce). Just put the curry into a freezer safe container or Ziplock baggie and keep it in the freezer for up to three months. To reheat, let it thaw in the refrigerator then heat on the stove in a frying pan.
According to National Geographic, Massaman curry dates back as far as the 16th century when chillies were first introduced to Thai cooking from the Americas through Portuguese traders.
More Delicious Curry Recipes
No need to reach for the takeout menus, just try one of these flavorful recipes and enjoy a good curry right in the comfort of your own kitchen!
Chicken Massaman Curry
Video
Ingredients
- 4 ounces Massaman curry paste (see notes above)
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 cans (14 oz each) unsweetened coconut milk, full fat
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 onion
- 1 pound chicken
- 4 medium potatoes
- 2 carrots
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter (creamy or crunchy)
- 1/2 cup peanuts
- sriracha sauce to taste
- red pepper flakes to taste
- jasmine rice (cooked)
Instructions
- Heat vegetable oil in an extra large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in curry paste; cook and stir for about 2-3 minutes. This is strong, make sure your windows are open and a fan is blowing.
- Add 1 can coconut milk and stir until well blended. Add ginger, cilantro, sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, and Worcestershire. Bring to a boil.
- Thinly slice the onion and chicken, then add them to the sauce. Reduce to a simmer. When chicken is white and cooked through (about 5 min or so) add another can of coconut milk and bring back to a boil.
- Peel and dice potatoes Peel and slice carrots. Add the potatoes, carrots, and remaining ingredients (except for the rice) and stir until everything is well mixed. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until potatoes are no longer crunchy in the middle. Serve hot over Jasmine rice and garnish with extra cilantro and/or limes if desired.
Notes
- It’s not a bad idea to boil your potatoes for three-four minutes before adding them to your curry. This is a great trick for when you are in a hurry and just trying to get dinner on the table and don’t want to wait for the potatoes to soften in the curry sauce.
- If you are adding extra vegetables, allow the vegetables to soften in the sauce for optimal flavor. If you are in a hurry, stir-fry the veggies until tender before adding to the sauce.
- Shake the coconut milk really well before opening so it doesn’t come out in one big clump. You can also avoid this by opening the coconut milk can from the bottom.
- Make it as spicy or as mild as you would like! Add sriracha while cooking, or serve it on the side if people prefer different spice levels.
- Instead of adding salt (if needed), try adding soy sauce. It gives you the salty flavor while also deepening the overall flavor of the dish.
- Don’t forget the limes! Adding a squeeze of fresh lime right before serving ties all those delicious flavors together.
Erica, this was a WOW flavourfull dish, thank you. I will definitely be doing this recipe again.
Recipe calls for 1 28 oz can of coconut milk in ingredients but says “add another can of coconut milk” under recipe. This was confusing. I added 2 14 oz cans and then another 14 oz can and now it appears I’ve messed up the recipe. Lame.
We apologize that we weren’t more clear in the recipe, it should be 28 ounces total (so 2 14-ounce cans). Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We fixed it on the recipe. Even if you added more coconut milk, hopefully it still tasted ok!
I first tastes massaman curry at my local Thai restaurant. I wanted something different to what i usually ate and saw the word curry. I’m crazy about it. The restaurant also makes fish massaman. Doesn’t light my fire.
Delicious! My husband loved this dish and he is not a fan of curries. This will be a regular dish in our household. It’s a winner!!
This was really delicious. Very easy to make and went down a treat. Drying to print it off and put in my ‘fav recipes folder’. Thanks so much.
Delicious but confusing – ingredients say 1 can coconut milk but recipe calls for 2 cans. I added more of everything & the 2nd can. Was strange to add the peanut butter late in the process. Didn’t have worsteshire so substituted soy sauce. Used potatoes, carrots, green beans & onions. Delicious!
The recipe calls for 28 ounces of coconut milk and the cans we usually get are each 14 ounces. Sorry for the confusion!
Delicious and easy to make. Great for company meal!
Absolutely delicious. Love it and will be making it again (and again).
OH MY GOODNESS! We consider ourselves connoisseurs of Massaman curry, and are always looking for the restaurant with the perfect version. I like this recipe as well as any I’ve had at our favorite Thai restaurants. And, it really was pretty easy to make. I know what I’ll be bringing to church potluck next week! Thanks so much for this recipe.
I love massaman curry and wanted to see if I could attempt it myself instead of always ordering take away. I used this recipe and it came out delicious! I did add some red and green bell peppers to it just for some extra veggies and because my favorite Thai restaurant does that as well. I also used the same curry paste as in the recipe as well. It was an instant hit!
This is the first time I have made Massaman curry and it was delicious. I made a few changes only 1tbls of brown sugar and fish sauce, I’ll instead of 2. Also left over Costco chicken. I did follow the recommendations of Worcester sauce and soy instead of salt, which really made a difference. My chef son said the dish was restaurant quality, the whole family enjoyed it. Highly recommended.
I love massaman curry and decided to try making it at home. I found this recipe and decided to try it instead of the others I found online. So glad I chose this one, it was AMAZING!!!! Just as good as the ones I have had at our local Thai restaurants. Thank you so much!!!!! It will be on regular rotation at home now.
Excellent. I tweaked a little to fit Keto. Skipped potatoes but added some bell peppers and zucchini. Massaman curry has excellent flavor & not as hot as the panang.
This was an amazing dish. Massaman chicken is a favorite meal when dining out and to make a loved cuisine at home was a real treat. A good balance of vegetables and plenty of curry. I will likely add an additional pound of chicken the next time. This recipe was also super easy to make.
I love this recipe! I had never tried to make curry before as it is a newly discovered dish. And now I can’t get enough!! Great easy to follow recipe!!
If you like potatoes and need to add a bit more deph to your dish, try this.
Try cubing your potatoes and browing them before adding to the curry.
Absolutely magnificent. Soooo rich. My guests were super happy