So you fancy making yourself some Thai food; have you first checked your pantry to make sure you have everything you need to whip up that tasty Thai Green Curry you’ve been craving? Here’s my recommended shopping list to stock your Thai pantry:

The Essentials:

• Thai Fish Sauce (Nam Pla)
• Palm Sugar
• Coconut Milk
• Limes (or Lime juice)
• Tamarind (paste or fresh)
• Oyster Sauce (Thai or Chinese)
• Kaffir Lime Leaves (Fresh or dried)
• Curry Pastes: Green/Red/Mussaman

Optional Ingredients:

• Thai Roasted Chilli Paste (Nam Prik Pao)
• Thai Chilli Sauce (Sriracha if you like it hot, Sweet Chilli if you can’t take the heat) 
• Dried Shrimp
• Salted Radish
• Coconut Cream
• Thai Green Peppercorns
• Thai Basil
• Lemongrass, fresh
• Dried Galangal
• Thai Bird’s Eye Chillies

Sourcing your ingredients:

If you are lucky enough to live near a Thai supermarket then great, go wild! If not, most Chinese supermarkets stock a wide variety of Thai products and you should be able to source most, if not all, of your basic ingredients from them. Do not worry if your don’t have access to any Asian supermarkets as many of the essential items are available at most major food retailers. Regardless of where you source your ingredients, I would always recommend purchasing actual Thai brands as these invariably taste more authentic as they are usually geared towards a Thai palette.

If you would like some great Thai recipes, please follow this link to my Thai Recipe Section: https://themuddledpantry.wordpress.com/category/recipes/thai/

Asian Supermarkets in Cape Town:

Thai Supermarkets:

New Asian Spice Supermarket
186 Main road, Sea Point
021 434 0598

Chinese Supermarkets:

Mainland China Supermarket
Grove Building, Grove Ave, Claremont
021 683 7298

Mun Fong Chinese Supermarket
Fruit & Veg City Centre, Monte Vista Boulevard, Monte Vista
021 558 7840

N1 City Asian Supermarket
Shop 22A N1 Value Centre, 1 Solly Smiedt Street, Goodwood

96 Chinese Supermarket 
94a Monte Vista Boulevard, Monte Vista
021 558 0199