Curry, check. Beef, Check. Potatoes. Check.
Well, this has them all so it's winning all the way in my book.

I love all things when it comes to Thai food and this one is very quick and easy to do at home. It's my go-to for using up some leftover roast beef but on this occasion, I had a steak to hand so it was a case of sharing it (Don't tell anyone I said that!).

One of the good things about this recipe is it can be prepped ahead and pulled together when needed. You can optimise all but the cooking steps to condense the prep time if you like. Really depends on how much of a rush you are in.

The paste, if you make a large batch, will easily last a few weeks in the fridge if sealed in an airtight jar.

This paste is very simple, especially if you have some power tools handy in the kitchen. I know that making it by hand in your pestle and mortar is better because you don't heat up the mix etc. but I there is a line and this time it would have crossed it.

If you don't have galangal, use fresh ginger, works just as well.

It's worth noting you can buy some great Thai pastes these days, I would recommend heading to an Asian supermarket rather than your high street names. You'll get far better ones which cost less for more.
Always good to have in the cupboard.

Step 1 - Slice up your meat

• Trim the fat off your steak, a shame I know but it's better without it here
• Thinly slice the steak and lay on a plate
• Cover with some kitchen paper and set aside. Don't put in the fridge as you need it to be room temperature when you cook it

Step 2 - Spud up

• Put a pan of salted boiling water on
• Cut your potatoes in half, then half again (or just call it quarters, depending on how you like your fractions!)
• Pop in your spuds and cook till just soft. Around 15 minutes
• When they are done, drain and put aside
   

Step 3 - The Paste

• Grind all the dry ingredients. The finer they are the less you will notice them in the finished dish. My blender grinds well so I use that before adding the wet
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry and blitz again. You may need to move it around a little between blasts. If it's too dry add a splash of vegetable oil
• The paste should come together but not be too wet
• Top tip. If you have children around, ask them to smell the shrimp paste!!
   

Step 4 - Bring it together

• If serving with rice, now is a good time to get it on
• Soak the tamarind in a bowl with about 75ml of boiling water, squish with a spoon and set aside
• Heat up a heavy bottomed frying pan which has a lid over a medium heat
• Have your can of coconut milk open and at the ready
• Add a splash of oil and about half of your paste mixture, moving it around and don't let it burn. Heat it through for about a minute. When it starts to catch, add a splash of the milk and stir
• Cook this for a few minutes to cook out the mixture, adding a little milk as required if it starts to catch
• Continue the process but adding larger portions of the milk until the whole can is incorporated 
• Squash the tamarind once more, then add the tamarind water, careful not to add the pulp
• Stirring in the palm sugar until dissolved and is mixed completely
• Add the potatoes, stir and cover for 2 minutes
• Crush some peanuts and chop some fresh coriander
• Finally, add the steak, stir and cover again for 2 minutes

Step 5 - Serve

• Serve with some rice
• Sprinkle all over with fresh coriander
• Add some crushed peanuts, sliced red chilli and slices of lime

Beef Massaman

• 250g sirloin steak
• 250g waxy salad/boiling potatoes
• Tin of coconut milk
• 1 tbsp tamarind (I use the sticky stuff in packs)
• 1 tbsp palm sugar
• Fresh coriander
• Unsalted peanuts
• 1 lime

The paste

• 1 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 2 cloves
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper corns
• 3 cloves of garlic peeled
• 2 shallots diced
• 3 red chillis, tops removed
• 2 small stalks of lemon grass (remove green part if larger) roughly chopped
• 1 tsp Shrimp paste (Yummy!)
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• Vegetable oil