For a never-fail curry paste, use A Pinch of Yum’s Easy Yellow Curry Paste recipe. Once you’ve made your own paste, you may never go back to store-bought.

Pick a winter afternoon when you can fill your home with the delicious scents of roasting garlic, ginger, and shallots. As soon as your paste is complete, you will want to make up a curry immediately, so plan to have your curry proteins and vegetables on hand, plus lots of rice or grits to soak up every last bit liquid in your bowl.

If your family prefers a mild curry, you might like this Texas Thai Curry Paste. All the original ideas are straight from A Pinch of Yum, modified slightly for a friend whose first experience with Thai food was too spicy.