Yellow curry paste substitutes

Dry spice standing in for the paste, which works better for yellow curry than for any other Thai curry.

Best for

chicken and potato yellow curry, supermarket-only cooking, weeknight coconut curries

This is a genuinely decent swap because yellow paste already contains curry powder style spices. What you lose is the fresh side: no lemongrass, no galangal, no kaffir lime, so it reads more Indian or Malaysian and less bright. If you can add even one smashed stalk of lemongrass or a strip of lime zest to the simmering pot, do it, because that single addition does more than any other adjustment. The paste is also salty, so the fish sauce is not optional.

The other mild Thai paste, warm-spiced with cinnamon and clove.

Best for

chicken, beef and potato curries, cooking for children, matching yellow curry's low heat

The best match on heat, since massaman is also mild, and the flavour families overlap through the shared dry spices. The curry will be brown rather than yellow and taste sweeter and warmer, with a clear cinnamon and clove note yellow curry does not have. Half a teaspoon of ground turmeric per can of coconut milk fixes the colour without much affecting the taste.

The thick, nutty, medium-hot paste with turmeric added for colour.

Best for

richer, thicker curries, when panang is the jar in your fridge, chicken and vegetables

Panang is saltier, thicker and hotter than yellow paste, and it carries ground peanuts and a strong kaffir lime note, so the curry comes out denser and more savoury with less of yellow curry's soft golden character. Use less than the recipe says, add extra coconut milk to loosen it, and hold back the fish sauce until you have tasted.

The most common Thai paste, toned down and coloured toward yellow.

Best for

when red paste is all you have, adults who like heat, curry stir-fries

The heat difference is the whole story. Red paste is several times hotter than yellow, so half the amount is the starting point and even that will be noticeably spicier. The curry turns orange rather than gold and tastes chili-forward and deeper rather than gentle and earthy. An extra splash of coconut milk and a teaspoon of palm sugar bring it back toward yellow curry's softness.

The real paste, and the easiest of the Thai pastes to make at home.

Best for

the closest flavour to the jar, controlling the heat exactly, freezing in portions

Blend 2 large mild dried red chilies soaked in hot water and seeded, 1 shallot, 4 garlic cloves, the tender part of 1 lemongrass stalk, 1 tablespoon grated galangal or ginger, 1 tablespoon grated fresh turmeric or 1 teaspoon ground, 2 teaspoons mild curry powder, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, half a teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon shrimp paste and half a teaspoon salt, with a splash of the soaking water. Yellow paste is forgiving because the dry spices carry it, so even a rough blend tastes right.

A jarred Indian paste standing in.

Best for

no Asian grocer nearby, chicken and potato curries, a mild family curry

Korma paste is mild, turmeric-yellow and coconut-friendly, so it slots in without much drama. It is sweeter and often has ground almond or cashew in it, which thickens the sauce more than yellow paste does, and it has no lemongrass or galangal at all, so the finish is less citrusy. Add lime juice at the end rather than during cooking to bring some brightness back.