Did you know creating seasoning blends is one of my specialties? I have over a dozen custom blends on my site and always keep them, including this Thai Spice Blend, in my pantry! (Sometimes my readers give them away as gifts. Truth.)
For this particular blend I wanted to capture some of the complex flavors of Thai cuisine in a dry, powdered spice blend (as opposed to a wet curry paste). I succeeded! And guess what? Most of the ingredients are easy to find. There are a couple of tricky ones, but I’ll give you some tips on where to look for them.
Use this blend in place of curry paste in a pinch. Or add it to roasted vegetables, stir fries, or rice dishes for a fun, exotic twist.
Thai Spice Recipe ingredients
I'm going to say up front, that this isn't an authentically Thai spice blend.
*gasp*
It's more... Thai-inspired. And closer to a curry powder, but with a different little twist. Here's what you'll need:
- Paprika: Just regular paprika. Sometimes called sweet paprika.
- Turmeric: Just the turmeric you probably already have.
- Ground Black Pepper: Freshly ground or pre-ground both work
- Ground Coriander: Love this seasoning and use it a lot in Mexican spice blends, too.
- Ground Fenugreek: This might be the sticking point. I found some in the bulk spice section of a nicer grocery store. Others might have it in the spice section. Or you can always find fenugreek online. See below for possible substitutions.
- Dry Mustard: Easy to find!
- Ground Cumin: Another staple that you probably already have.
- Ground Ginger: Pretty straightforward
- Cayenne Powder: Optional. I put in about ⅛ tsp, but if you don't want any heat at all, the omit it from the recipe.
How to make Thai Seasonings Blend
Combine all the spices well and store it in a spice jar or another lidded jar at room temp with your other spices. It’s that simple!
Is There a Fenugreek Substitute?
As your eyes run down that list of spices you're probably thinking "Ugh. I don't have fenugreek. Is there a fenugreek substitute?"
Short answer: Sort of. You could replace fenugreek with some garam masala (a blend commonly used in Indian dishes), yellow mustard seeds and brown sugar or just leave it out.
Long answer: Fenugreek really makes this Thai seasoning blend stand out. Have you ever used fenugreek? I see it pop up in ethnic recipes here and there, but I had never purchased any until now.
Fenugreek tastes like a cross between celery leaves and maple syrup. (I know. It sounds weird) It's hard to duplicate.
It really makes this spice blend taste.... more authentically Thai. (According to someone who has never been to Thailand and has probably never had truly authentic Thai food. Just humor me, OK?)
Where Can you Buy Ground Fenugreek?
If you can find fenugreek, please use it! If your grocery store doesn't carry it, try a natural/fancy-pants grocery store like Whole Foods. Or an ethnic grocery store that carries Asian spices, if you happen to have one nearby.
Amazon has it, too: Ground Fenugreek. Honestly I'd rather get it there then drive all over town hunting.
I'm excited for you to use this seasoning blend! If you're wondering what you'd use it for, here are a few of my favorite recipes that highlight this Thai Seasoning Blend.
Recipes Using Thai Seasoning
You can use Thai seasoning on roasted vegetables, as a rub for grilled chicken or steak, or in marinades. Here are a few recipes with Thai seasoning, if you're needing more inspiration...
This Paleo Thai Shrimp and Vegetable Skillet is a light, fresh meal that comes together really quickly -- like a stir fry. It's also low-carb & Whole30 compliant and great for summer.
This Thai Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Coconut and Lime was surprisingly tasty. I never thought to pair sweet potatoes with Thai seasoning, but it's really magical.
Especially with toasted coconut flakes all over the top. Mmm.
This Quick Thai Fish Curry is a recent favorite of mine. MMM.
In this recipe, the Thai Seasoning Blend acts like Thai curry paste. But it's shelf-stable, which is nice.
This recipe is FABULOUS with Instant Pot Coconut Rice, by the way.
I loved this Thai seasoning so much that I included it in the spice blend section of my first cookbook -- The Big Book of Paleo Slow Cooking and used it in two recipes:
Thai Pulled Pork Tacos with Creamy Chili Slaw (pictured above) -- This might be my favorite recipe in the whole book. That's saying a lot for someone who was never a fan of pork before. This recipe made me a believer.
Thai-Spiced Seafood Soup with Zoodles -- This one is a creamy, coconut curry-like soup with chunks of flaky cod and shrimp. And lots of zoodles. I'm a huge fan of this one.
Give this blend a whirl and let me know what you think!
How to store this Thai Spice Blend
Store your homemade spice blend in an airtight container at room temperature.
More Recipes on Perry's Plate
Homemade Thai Spice Recipe
If you can absolutely help it -- don't leave out the fenugreek. It might be tricky to find, but it has a sweet, maple-like taste and gives this spice blend its exoticness.
Ingredients
- 4 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 teaspoon ground fenugreek
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½-3/4 teaspoon cayenne powder (to taste)
Instructions
Combine well and store in an airtight container.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
-
SWOMMOLY 25 Glass Spice Jars with 703 Spice Labels, Chalk Marker and Funnel Complete Set. 25 Square Glass Jars 4OZ, Airtight Cap, Pour/sift Shaker Lid -
Amazon Brand - Happy Belly Ground Turmeric, 2.75 ounce (Pack of 1) -
Simply Organic Ground Coriander Seed, 2.29-Ounce, Rich, Warm Earthy Yet Fruity Flavor, Bright Aroma, Slight Citrus Undertones -
Rani Fenugreek (Methi) Seeds Ground Powder 3oz (85g)
Nutrition Information
Yield 12 Serving Size 1 ½ teaspoonsAmount Per Serving Calories 10Total Fat 0gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 0mgSodium 2mgCarbohydrates 2gFiber 1gSugar 0gProtein 0g
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Disclosure: This post may contain Amazon affiliate links. Purchases made by using these links don’t cost you any extra and helps to keep my content free.
Carol at Wild GooseTea says
Wow, I had no idea you did this. How totally impressive! Totally!!! I had to repeat myself. How totally wonderful. I guess I am going to be doing a lot of pinning here in the next few minutes!
Gwen @simplyhealthyfamily says
Yay, I have all of those spices except Fenugreek {what does that taste like?}
My kids hate everything w any sort of flavor too the stinkers ;)
Natalie Perry says
Fenugreek has a sort of maple-y smell and flavor, although I don't think it sweetens anything. It definitely has a distinct flavor.
Linda says
Have you or anyone made a dry mix for Thai Green Curry? I'm desperate to find a recipe for this??
A says
Nice site...
Natalie Perry says
Thanks!
Amir says
Not similar to thai food
Maybe it lake a chinese and indian mix spices
Geoff Rhodes says
Just made a batch. Il let you know whether I agree
Natalie Perry says
Yes, let me know what you think!
Paul says
Where did you get the spice jars?
OMAR SARA says
This article provides helpful information. great post
Marlene says
I had a Thai-spiced Chicken Chowder recipe that called for Thai 7-spice and mistakenly bought Chinese 5-spice, so I used this as my substitute. I had all your ingredients except the fenugreek and used 1/4 teaspoon of the cayenne. It worked out very well and had a tiny bit of background heat to it. I can definitely recommend this seasoning. It's not exactly Thai 7-spice ( it's more of a Thai curry spice mix ) but it's wonderfully flavorful and aromatic and I can only assume the fenugreek ( that I'm buying today ) will make it even more so! Thanks Natalie for helping me out with this delicious recipe! I look forward to trying out some of your other awesome-looking recipes!
Natalie Perry says
I've never heard of Thai 7-spice! That sounds interesting. I agree -- this one is more like a curry type of seasoning. I'm glad it worked well for you!
Sharon Dodd says
I used this spice recipe when I couldn’t find it ready made at the supermarket. I had to use the substitute Garam marsala. I used it as a coating (mixed with plain flour), on thigh fillets. My family loved it, and the balance of flavours was perfect. Thank you.???
Brenda K. Heyd Cofell says
Natalie, can you use this Homemade Thai Seasoning as a rub for a pork loin? rub it on a pork loin and bake it in the oven? That is one of reasons that I purchased a 10 oz ziplock bag of ground Fenugreek from nuts.com. So I could make this seasoning and rub it on a pork loin and see how tasty it would be roasting a pork loin in the oven with this seasoning rubbed into it. I thought that I saw this recipe somewhere on your blog site that a pork loin baked in the oven with your Homemade Thia Seasoning on it would taste really good but now I can't find it? Can you help me with this dilemma?
Mark livingood says
I laughed when you mentioned that your children weren’t too fond of “spicy food.” My middle son would not eat anything that was mixed together or spicy. 20 years later he took me to sushi restaurant and then to his favorite Korean restaurant and then his favorite Chinese restaurant for stir fry. When I asked him about his new found love of those types of food he replied “what do you mean? I have always loved that food.” Children. What can ya say
Natalie Perry says
Never give up hope on them, I guess! Haha!
Joy says
If I cant find dry mustard powder, can I just omit it?
Natalie Perry says
You can find it in most grocery stores in the spice section. Or simply omit it if you can't locate some.
April says
This sounds interesting! I will probably reduce the cumin and maybe the turmeric because I actually don't like curry even though I do cook other things with those spices, and I think those probably make something most curry-like.
Thanks for the interesting combo! I'll be ordering some fenugreek!
Natalie Perry says
True! Feel free to tinker with it to get it the way you'd like it!
Tim Reinhart says
Fenugreek is a staple at Penzey's Spices, http://www.penzeys.com if you don't have one near you, they'll ship it for you from their Wisconsin headquarters.
Natalie Perry says
Thanks for the tip!
Fred says
@Natalie Perry, fenugreek is on Amazon.
Fiona Dean says
Thank you! Just made a butternut squash and cauliflower Thai curry with your spice blend and coconut milk and it was delicious!
Natalie Perry says
That sounds delicious! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Londa says
Hi Natalie, I was wondering if you use regular paprika or smoked or sweet.
Thanks,
Londa
Natalie Perry says
For this recipe, regular or sweet paprika is fine.
Petro Esterhuizen says
Thank you so very much Natalie. I found all die info that I was looking for...from you.
Bless you!!!!!!!
Natalie Perry says
Glad to have helped! Thanks Petro!
Fatima says
Will try this in Thai soup.
Thanks for the easy recipe, have all the ingredients 👍
Ann says
Just sprinkled this over my sweet potato and it was delicious. I love your spice blend recipes and pressure cooker cookbook, thank you.
Natalie Perry says
Thank you!
Pip says
How much of this do you use per recipe? Or is this amount for one recipe? (soup, meat rub, vegetable sautee)
Natalie Perry says
It depends on the recipe. Just store it in a little jar and use it like any other spice blend in your cabinet... according to the recipe you use or to taste.
Fanica says
Thank you for the recipe. I made oven roasted potatoes by using half of the seasoning, vegetable oil and one pound of Idaho potatoes. I added salt but I belive that I should have added granulated sugar instead since Thai food is hot and sweet. I was taught that brown sugar burns easily and should be used in baking. This is a great and economical side dish. 😊
Natalie Perry says
Glad you were able to adapt it to your liking!