Massaman Curry Paste
Massaman (from *Mussulman* — a term for Muslim) reflects the Persian and Malay-Muslim influence on southern Thai and Thai court cookery. The paste arrived in Thailand via the sea trade routes and was absorbed into the Thai culinary tradition in the 17th century. Served at the Thai royal court, it remains one of the most sophisticated preparations in the entire Southeast Asian culinary canon. Thompson's treatment of massaman occupies more pages than any other single paste.
The most complex curry paste in the Thai repertoire — a preparation that bears the unmistakable influence of Malay-Muslim traders and the spice routes that brought cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and star anise to the Thai south. Massaman paste takes 45–60 minutes to pound correctly and cannot be rushed. It is the paste of slow-cooked beef and lamb, of potatoes and peanuts, of tamarind and palm sugar — a paste of depth and warmth rather than freshness and heat.