Easy Vegetable Massaman Curry One Pot (kaeng matsaman)

Vegetable Massaman Curry is a lesser-known Thai curry, but it’s probably one of the most delicious! I always find it hard to not order a Thai Green curry when we go out, but these days, I think Massaman curry has taken the top spot!

The blend of spices is just so delicious – there’s nothing else out there that tastes like it! Like Panang curry, it takes influence from Malay cuisine. This means it uses spices like cumin seeds, coriander seeds and cloves. Not the usual Thai ingredients, but they fuse with the traditional Thai flavours to make a veg Massaman curry that is truly unique and tastes out of this world!

As usual, we’ll go through all the ingredients, substitutions and equipment you can use to make this recipe in depth. You can skip to the bottom for the full recipe though!

What is Vegetable Massaman Curry?

Massaman Curry is a Thai-Malay dish that has Malaysian and Indian influences. It potentially dates back to the 17th century! 

It has a rich history that we won’t go into in detail, but basically there are a few theories for where it came from. One is that the spices were traded into Thailand from the Malay archipelago, which included lots of Muslim traders. The word “massaman’ is thought to have derived from the word ‘Musselman’ which is an ancient form of Muslim. The new ingredients were added to traditional Thai ingredients and a new type of curry was born – Massaman! 

Whatever the true story is, it’s clear that this is not purely a Thai dish. It’s actually reminiscent of a Yellow Curry in that sense too. We also have a recipe for a Tofu Yellow Curry if you’d like to try it!

Ingredients for Vegan Massaman Curry Paste

Vegan Massaman curry paste uses 13 ingredients, which might seem like a lot for just the paste. If you don’t have the time or just can’t be bothered with it – then don’t worry, we have been there and can relate!

If you’re not making a vegan massaman curry paste from scratch then we recommend using Mae Jum. Their pastes are just like the real deal. They’re home made to a fabulous Thai Mama’s own family recipe and are absolutely divine. Plus, they’re certified by the Vegan Society! 

Try the traditional curry paste bundle – it's great value as each packets serves 8 portions!

Mae Jum were actually kind enough to send us samples to try, so we’re not making it up – they genuinely are amazing! Try them by hitting the button below...

So, if you are making the paste for your Vegetable Massaman Curry, this is what you’ll need:

• Shallots
• Garlic
• Black Peppercorns
• Cumin Seeds (or powdered version)
• Coriander Seeds (or powdered version)
• Cinnamon Powder
• Cardamom pods (just the insides)
• Dried chillies – soaked (or fresh red chillies)
• Galangal
• Lemongrass
• Cloves
• Coriander stalks
• Yellow bean paste / Miso Paste
• 2 tbsp water

Once you’ve got all the ingredients measured out (full measurements in the recipe card below), all you have to do is blend them up! We do this in a cup blender. This is easier for us than using a pestle & mortar – even though using the pestle & mortar is more authentic. Maybe we’re lazy, but we’re going for convenience as well as authenticity with our recipes. We know that people don’t always have the time to choose the traditional but more time consuming method.

Pro Tip: a lot of recipes, including the method we learnt in Thailand, includes frying off the whole spices in a frying pan before blending.

We tried, and compared, both methods – with and without frying. They were both equally delicious. The thinking behind frying the spices is that it brings the flavour out more. Even though frying the spices means a more intense flavour, we found it didn’t make a huge difference to the final dish. That’s why we have skipped this step in our method. It makes it a lot easier and quicker for you when making this curry paste!

Ingredients for this curry

Once you’ve made the paste, you just need another 11 ingredients! They are:

• Potato (a Massaman curry always has potato in it!)
• Onion
• Tofu
• Red Pepper
• Green Pepper
• Peanuts
• Coconut cream
• Coconut milk
• Tamarind (use lime juice as a substitute)
• Vegan Fish Sauce (use soy sauce as a substitute)
• Sugar

Step 1
Fry off the full lot of Massaman paste until fragrant.

Step 2
Add in the potatoes and onion, and mix well with the paste. 

Step 3
Pour in the coconut cream and stir well.

Step 4
Once combined, pour in the coconut milk.

Step 5
Add in the peanuts, sugar and vegan fish sauce

Step 6
Simmer for 10-15 minutes (until potatoes are just about soft) and then add in the tamarind.

Step 7 
Once the potatoes are softened, pop the peppers and the tofu in and stir well. Simmer for a further two minutes and serve!

Niche ingredients

Some of the ingredients listed in this vegetable Massaman curry recipe are a bit niche. However, don’t let that put you off! We’ve included helpful links for where to buy ‘lazy’ versions and also included substitutions below! Let us know if you have any questions about the ingredients used in the comments, or over email.

Cardamom pods – you only need to use the insides of the cardamom pods. It’s a bit fiddly to get them out, so you can use powdered cardamom instead, to make it easier.

Tamarind – most supermarkets sell tamarind paste in jars. It’s harder to find – and more time consuming, to use fresh tamarind. If you don’t have this on hand, a suitable replacement is lime juice. Tamarind adds a sour flavour to the dish, so the juice from a lime will add a similar flavour.

Galangal – galangal is part of the ginger family, but tastes completely different. It’s quite floral, whereas ginger is fiery and hot. We recommend getting galangal in a jar, which is what we have used in this recipe. If you don’t have any, use half the amount of fresh ginger instead.

Dried Red Chillies – if you don’t have dried chillies, use fresh red chillies. The overall flavour won’t be as intense or earthy but it will still taste lovely!

Lemongrass – available fresh in most supermarkets, and freezes very well. You can also get lemongrass in a jar as a ‘lazy’ version, which we have no problem with at all. It does the same job! There isn’t really a replacement for lemongrass as it has such a specific fragrant flavour. If you don’t add it, the curry will taste different.

Yellow bean paste – also known as Dan’s favourite all time ingredient! It’s a savoury fermented paste made from soybeans. Find it in Asian supermarkets or use white miso paste instead. There will be no noticeable difference to the finished dish if you use white miso instead of yellow bean paste.

Massaman Curry FAQs

We've written a whole guide on how to cook vegan Thai food – if you love this recipe, check it out!

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