Beer and food matching: Thai green curry

This month - what would you serve with Thai green curry?

Curry? Again? OK, we asked our panel to look at chicken curry a few months ago, but based on recent research from AC Nielsen which shows that Asian and oriental food is the fastest growing category on pub menus, we thought it was worth giving the team another crack at some beer matches.

Thai chicken curry, which is a very different dish to your classic pub 'ruby', is now sold in nine per cent of community pubs, according to Nielsen's figures. As well as English IPA-type ales. We'd expect the panel to pair up some authentic lagers and, naturally, Asian beers with the fragrant flavour of Thailand. Here's what they came up with.

• Phil Vickery, chef and broadcaster:​ You need a light lager or summer ale, the paler the better. Although fragrant, Thai curry carries a kick and can be quite rich with coconut milk and big flavoured herbs, so a the soft lager type of beer would be perfect. Lower alcohol lagers can also help, so steer clear of anything more than five per cent.

Ben Bartlett, catering development manager, The Union Pub Company:​ Jennings Crag Rat 4.3 per cent: This refreshing golden coloured bitter complements a medium Thai green curry and is brewed using pale ale malt and two classic varieties of English whole cone hops to give a delicate flavour and aroma.

An essential ingredient in many Thai recipes is Kaffir lime. Ideally picked fresh off the plant these leaves impart a wonderfully aromatic smell and flavour. Just a few leaves are more than enough for mountains of green curry paste.

The quirky name celebrates all those men and women who enjoy climbing on the crags and cliffs in the Lake District. 'Crag Rat' is a name used to locally describe a particularly enthusiastic climber and this is the perfect beer to slake the thirst at the end of a hard day's climbing.

Richard Fox, chef and author of the Food and Beer Cook Book, published on April 24:​ South East Asian cuisine is just so much more at home with beer than wine. While a quality floral pilsner such as Urquell or Budvar will perform a good all round job on most spicy foods, especially in the cutting and cleansing of the palette, you to need to look to the more specialty beers for specific matches and a full-on gastronomic experience.

Bring on a Belgian wheat beer such as Hoegaarden and a Thai green curry to generate an interplay of flavours that is almost unsurpassable. It's the combination of herbs and spices that complement the wheat beer so well: lemon grass, Kaffir lime leaf, ginger, chilli and coriander combine together in the curry to bring out all those latent citrus and herbal elements in the beer.

It's a magical combination, which incidentally works equally well with a Malaysian Laksa, which contains a similar herb/spice base. Rupert Ponsonby, R&R Teamwork:​ Gulpener Korenwolf Wheat Beer from Mastricht in Holland, tasting like a cross-over between the zesty Belgian wheat beers and the more tropical, clove and ripe banana of German wheat beers. This would add a wonderful floral element to the green curry at the same time as having the fullness of body to refresh the palate.

John Keeling, head brewer, Fuller's:​ With such a creamy, coconut dish, you need something to refresh the palate between mouthfuls. How about a bottle of chilled Discovery, or Organic Honey Dew?The gentle citrus notes will complement flavours such as lemongrass.

Some of the American, highly-hopped beers would also go well - I'd suggest Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.

Michael Tuckwood, Craft Guild of Chefs member and patron chef at The Stag in Aylesbury:​ I think you need a lively beer full of fruity flavours to enhance the exoticness of the dish, rather than masking it. My personal favourite is Banana Bread beer (5.2 per cent ABV) from Charles Wells, as the fruitiness of the beer really complements the exotic flavours in the dish.

It combines the tropical flavour of banana with the traditional taste of bitter, and has a tempting banana aroma that complements the light fragrance of the curry. The taste and the fizz of Banana Bread Beer also helps to cool down the mouth, which is needed due to the spiciness of the dish.

Banana Bread Beer comes in pint-sized bottles that are ideal for sharing between four people in wine glasses, adding a nice stylish touch to the serving of the beer. As is the same with all beer and curry combinations, Banana Bread beer should be served ice cold to fully do justice to a Thai green curry.

I would also suggest moving on to a lighter and more refreshing beer such as Corona after the Thai green curry, as this works well as a good cooling, refreshing drink between the main course and dessert.

John Bexon, Greene King head brewer:​ Beer to Dine For (5 per cent ABV), as its name suggests, was specially brewed to complement food; the lightest malts and Tettnang hops are used to achieve the gorgeous pale gold colour.

The unique blend of its fruity melon flavours and crisp dry finish is perfect for refreshing the palate and highlighting the fragrant notes and spiciness in Thai food.

Next month, our panel will be suggesting beer matches for the cheeseboard. If you have a menu item you'd like a match for, email chosbbq@gurchoyvpna.pbz​​