• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Tastessence

Tastessence

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Articles

What Can Be Used to Thicken Curry Sauce? These Methods Work

Opting to make a curry when you have many guest coming over is not only a delicious idea, but it is also easy to make and can be quite economical. But what you don't want to serve your guests is a bland runny curry! Here are some ways on how to thicken your curry sauce when such a curry crisis strikes.

Home / Herbs / What Can Be Used to Thicken Curry Sauce? These Methods Work
What Can be Used to Thicken Curry Sauce?

Opting to make a curry when you have many guest coming over is not only a delicious idea, but it is also easy to make and can be quite economical. But what you don’t want to serve your guests is a bland runny curry! Here are some ways on how to thicken your curry sauce when such a curry crisis strikes.

Nargisi Kofta Curry Indian Cuisine
Fish Curry
Lentil Soup With Pita Bread
Indian Fish Curry
Red Curry Fish
Tasty Palak Paneer Served With Nan
Homemade Eggplant Or Brinjal Curry

The Name Game

The word ‘curry’ is the anglicized version of the Tamil word ‘kari’ that translates to sauce.

A combination of fresh herbs and dried spices do have a way of titillating your senses. Add the goodness of some vegetables and a bit of tanginess from tomatoes, and you just can’t resist having a spoonful of it. If that wasn’t good enough, imagine some succulent meat cooked in this flavorful sauce with the spiciness of curry. The juices of the meat intertwine to create a concoction that is just divine! Did we get you craving for a bowl of rice and some curry?

Different versions of curries can be found all across Southeast Asia. In the Indian subcontinent alone, you’d find curries that range from really delicate in flavor to some that are loaded with curry leaves and coconut, while some are extremely spicy depending on the region. In Thai, Indonesian, and Malaysian curries, or even Filipino ones, you might find the liberal use of ingredients like shrimp paste, fish sauce, kaffir lime leaves, or galangal that are completely absent in Indian curries.

No matter what curry you make, the basic principle of making a curry remains the same. So if you have guests on their way and your curry seems to be as runny as ever, here are some ways that could help thicken it.

How To Make Curry Sauce Thicker

Cooking without the lid

Thicken Curry with Roti

In order to thicken the curry sauce, we suggest the simplest thing first. Just let your curry simmer for a few good minutes and let the heat do all the work for you! Cooking without the lid would result in a greater amount of water getting evaporated, resulting into a thicker curry without the addition of anything else. Thus, maintaining the texture and the flavors of the curry just right!

Lentils

Veg Curry

Adding a tablespoon or two of red lentils would help thickening Indian curries a bit. Lentils usually swell and breakdown in the curries, and this adds some bulk to it. Another perk of adding lentils to your dish is that it is an excellent source of proteins, ideal for vegetarians.

Coconut milk or Yogurt

Coconut Milk to Thicken Curry

Adding a bit of ground coconut or coconut milk has two advantages. First, it may thicken the sauce, and second, it gives a milder taste to it with loads of coconuty aroma. So if you find your curry to be a bit too spicy to your liking, a few spoonfuls of coconut milk would give it a milder taste as well as a thicker and a smoother texture. A few spoons of yogurt to the curry while it’s simmering could help thicken it as well as give it a slight tang.

Cornstarch or Arrowroot powder

Corn Powder

These staple thickening agents are usually added to almost everything, and curries are no exception. About one tablespoon of cornflour or arrowroot for every cup of liquid would do the trick. Using arrowroot would impart a better keeping quality to the curry once it’s frozen. You could go all Asian by adding a bit of rice flour, giving it a more authentic touch!

Mashed potatoes

Mashed Potatoes

Adding mashed or softened boiled potatoes to your curries could help thicken and add some bulk to them. This will also help to mellow the spices. In case you’ve added a bit too much salt to your curry, a few spoons of well-mashed potatoes will definitely rescue it! You could also peel some eggplants, roast them, and blitz them in a blender, adding this would give a creamier and smoother finish to your curry.

Ground nuts

Groundnuts on curry

Adding ground nuts like peanuts, almonds, or cashews could also help thicken curry sauces. Ground cashews and almonds are integral to some iconic recipes and dishes, like the butter chicken, of India. Addition of these nuts lends a thicker and creamier texture to the curries. Peanuts are usually a standard addition to a number of dishes of South-East Asian and Chinese cuisines; adding ground peanuts to your curry could give it an oriental feel.

Roux

Roux for Curry

This ingredient may be all-French, but you’d be surprised by the wonder it may work with your curry. This thickening agent will give any dish a creamier texture. Although roux is made by cooking wheat flour in butter, we’d suggest you use bacon or vegetable fat in place of it. Make the roux first, and then add it to the curry.

You could add puréed onions and tomatoes instead of chopped ones, this intrinsically lends the curries a thicker base.

Paneer Kima Kofta Curry
Goan Style Mixed Vegetable Curry
Thai Vegetable Curry
Spicy And Hot King Fish Curry
Vegetable Curry Cooking In Pan
Homemade Eggplant

Like it? Share it!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
« Previous Post
Next Post »

Category iconHerbs,  Spices & Sauces

Get Updates Right to Your Inbox

Sign up to receive the latest and greatest articles from our site automatically each week (give or take)...right to your inbox.
Blog Updates

Further Insights

seasoning
Six Top Tips to Get Your Seasoning Perfect
April 22, 2020
A Question That Bugs Many – Are Sherbet and Sorbet the Same?
May 22, 2015
The Best Tips on What Can Be Used to Thicken Alfredo Sauce
March 16, 2015

Primary Sidebar

Search

Latest Articles

substitute for milk in mac and cheese

4 More Ideas for What to Substitute for Milk in Mac and Cheese

saffron spice in a bowl

What Are the Best Saffron Substitute Options?

mixed vodka drink

What Does Vodka Mix With? 6 Tasty Ideas for Your Next Cocktail

tofu sushi roll in bowl with sauce

4 Simple Tofu Substitute Options for Meat-Free Diets

Exploring the website?

Our site includes quite a bit of content, so if you're having an issue finding what you're looking for, go on ahead and use that search feature there!

Footer

We hope you are enjoying Tastessence! We provide informative and helpful articles about ingredient substitutes, healthy eating, and all around cool stuff about food and recipes.
  • Facebook
  • RSS

Copyright © Tastessence & Buzzle.com, Inc.
6789 Quail Hill Pkwy, Suite 211 Irvine CA 92603

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contact Us
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsAccept
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.

SAVE & ACCEPT