Sam Glur: Thai Garlic, Coriander Root and Pepper Paste

Sam glur paste is a simple Thai aromatic paste made by pounding three ingredients together: garlic, coriander (cilantro) roots and white peppercorns. The name means roughly “three companions” or “three friends.” The paste is pale, coarse and intensely fragrant. Thai cooks use it to season meat before grilling or frying, to start stir-fries, and to flavor clear soups and meatballs. It contains no chilies, so it brings savory depth and gentle peppery warmth rather than fiery heat. Many Thai dishes start with this paste.

What is sam glur paste?

Sam glur paste is one of the most basic flavor foundations in Thai home cooking. It is a mix of crushed garlic, coriander root and white pepper, usually made in a mortar and pestle just before cooking. It is not a sauce and is not meant to be eaten on its own. It works like a seasoning base that the rest of a dish is built on, much as sautéed onion and garlic start many Western recipes.

Why is it called sam glur, and what are the other spellings?

The Thai name สามเกลอ joins sam, meaning “three,” with a word for close friends or companions. The name describes three ingredients that are almost always used together. Because Thai script can be written in Latin letters in several ways, you may also see sam kloe, saam gler or sam gler. All of these refer to the same garlic, coriander root and pepper combination.

What does sam glur paste look, smell and taste like?

Freshly pounded sam glur paste is a rough, moist, creamy-beige mash. It is not a smooth purée. Look closely and you will see:

• Color: mostly ivory to pale tan from the garlic, with off-white and faint greenish fibers from the coriander roots and fine grey-beige specks of white pepper.
• Texture: sticky and slightly wet, with small chunks of garlic and stringy root fibers if pounded briefly. It becomes more paste-like the longer you pound.
• Aroma: sharp, pungent raw garlic first, then an earthy, deeply “cilantro-like” scent from the roots, and a warm, slightly musky pepper smell that tickles the nose.
• Taste when cooked: savory, rounded and fragrant, with a gentle heat at the back of the throat from the white pepper. Raw, it tastes harsh and should not be judged that way.

When sam glur paste hits hot oil, the kitchen fills with a toasty garlic smell within seconds. That moment is the sign that the paste is doing its job.

What does each of the three ingredients contribute?

Each ingredient in sam glur paste plays a separate role. Garlic gives bulk and savory pungency. Coriander roots add earthy, herbal depth. White peppercorns supply warmth and bite. Together they form a balanced base that tastes fuller than any one of them alone.

Garlic: the body of the paste

Garlic is the largest component of sam glur paste by volume. It gives the paste its sticky texture and its main savory, pungent flavor. Thai garlic is typically small, with tiny cloves and thin, papery skins that are often tinged pink or purple. Because the skins are so thin, Thai cooks often pound small cloves with the skin on. If you are using larger, common supermarket garlic, peel it first. Use fewer cloves than a Thai recipe lists, because one large clove can equal several small Thai ones.

Coriander roots: the earthy, hidden ingredient

Coriander roots are the pale root ends of the coriander (cilantro) plant. They are the ingredient that most clearly marks the paste as Thai. They look like thin, branching, off-white to light tan carrots, often only a few centimeters long, with fine hair-like rootlets. They usually still carry a little soil.

Coriander roots taste like a deeper, earthier, less grassy version of the leaves. Their flavor holds up better to heat than the delicate leaves do, which is why they go into the paste while the leaves are kept for garnish. To prepare them, scrub off all soil under running water, trim away any dry or stringy tips, and chop them roughly before pounding.

Coriander sold in many Western supermarkets has had its roots cut off. Look for bunches with roots attached at Asian grocery stores or farmers' markets, or grow your own.

White peppercorns: warmth and bite

White peppercorns are small, round, cream-to-grey-beige seeds. They come from the same plant as black pepper, but the dark outer layer has been removed. Compared with black pepper, white pepper smells earthier and more musky and tastes sharper and hotter, with less of black pepper's fruity, floral note. Before chilies became common in Thai cooking, pepper was a major source of heat, and in sam glur paste it still supplies the gentle warmth that lingers after each bite.

Whole white peppercorns pounded fresh smell far stronger than pre-ground white pepper, which loses aroma quickly once the jar is open.

Ingredient	How to recognize it	Main contribution	Common substitute	Limitation of the substitute
Garlic	Small cloves with thin white, pink or purple skins (Thai type); larger cloves elsewhere	Bulk, stickiness, savory pungency	Regular large-clove garlic, peeled	Slightly milder and more watery; adjust quantity by eye
Coriander roots	Thin, pale, branching roots at the base of a coriander bunch	Earthy, deep herbal aroma that survives heat	The lowest, thickest part of coriander stems	Greener and grassier, less earthy; you need more stems for a similar effect
White peppercorns	Small, smooth, cream to grey-beige round seeds	Sharp warmth, musky aroma, gentle heat	Black peppercorns	More floral and fruity, less earthy; leaves dark flecks in pale dishes

How do you make sam glur paste with a mortar and pestle?

The traditional way to make sam glur paste is to pound the ingredients in a heavy stone mortar and pestle, starting with the hardest ingredient and finishing with the softest. Pounding crushes the cells of the garlic and roots, releasing more juice and aroma than cutting does.

Thai kitchens typically use a deep granite mortar with a granite pestle for aromatic pastes. A tall clay mortar with a wooden pestle is also common in Thailand, but it is designed mainly for bruising and mixing salads such as green papaya salad, and it does not grind hard peppercorns as well.

A starting-point batch

There is no single fixed ratio. Families and cooks adjust it to taste and to the dish. A practical starting point for seasoning about 500 g (1 lb) of meat is:

• 4–6 cloves of regular garlic (or a larger handful of small Thai cloves)
• 2–3 coriander roots, cleaned and roughly chopped
• About ½ teaspoon whole white peppercorns
• A small pinch of coarse salt (optional, to help grinding)

Steps

1. Grind the peppercorns first. Put the white peppercorns and the pinch of salt in the dry mortar. Pound and grind with a circular motion until they become a coarse powder. Their aroma will rise sharply.
2. Add the coriander roots. Pound them with the pepper until the fibers break down into a rough, damp mash. Roots are tougher than garlic, so they go in before it.
3. Add the garlic last. Pound with short, firm strokes, scraping the sides back down with a spoon, until everything forms a coarse, sticky paste.
4. Stop at the texture the dish needs. A slightly chunky paste is fine for marinades and frying. Pound longer for a smoother paste that blends evenly into meatballs or soup.
5. Use it promptly. The aroma is strongest right after pounding.

Tip: hold a hand or a cupped cloth loosely over the top of the mortar while pounding the peppercorns so they do not jump out.

Can you make sam glur paste in a food processor or blender?

Yes, but the result is different. A food processor chops rather than crushes, so the paste tends to be wetter and less aromatic, with cut pieces instead of a bruised mash. Small batches also tend to fly to the sides of the bowl and miss the blades, so you may need to add a little oil or water. A practical compromise is to grind the peppercorns separately in a spice grinder, then chop the garlic and roots very finely with a knife and press them together with the side of the blade.

How is sam glur paste used in Thai cooking?

Sam glur paste is used in three main ways: as a marinade base for meat, as an aromatic starter fried in oil, and as a seasoning for soups and minced-meat mixtures. In each case it is combined with other seasonings, most often fish sauce, soy sauce or sugar.

As a marinade base

Mixed with fish sauce or soy sauce, a little sugar and sometimes oil or coconut milk, sam glur paste becomes a marinade that clings to meat. It is a classic starting point for dishes such as:

• Gai yang – Thai grilled chicken, where the garlic and pepper give the charred skin a savory, aromatic crust.
• Moo ping – grilled pork skewers, often sweetened and enriched with coconut milk.
• Thai-style fried chicken or pork, where the paste flavors the meat before it is battered or fried.

Rub the marinade thoroughly into the meat. Thin slices take on flavor faster than large, bone-in pieces, so give thicker cuts more time in the refrigerator.

As an aromatic base for stir-fries

Fry sam glur paste briefly in hot oil to start a stir-fry. A well-known example is garlic and pepper pork or chicken (often called moo or gai kratiem prik thai), where the garlic-pepper flavor is the star. Watch the pan closely: garlic goes from golden and nutty to burnt and bitter very quickly. Use medium heat, stir constantly, and add the meat as soon as the paste smells toasty and turns light gold.

In clear soups and meatballs

Pounded into minced pork or chicken, sam glur paste seasons the small meatballs found in Thai clear soups (gaeng jued) and in rice soup (khao tom). It gives a gentle broth a savory, peppery fragrance without making it cloudy or spicy. The paste can also be stirred directly into simmering broth.

How is sam glur paste different from Thai curry paste?

Sam glur paste is much simpler than Thai curry paste. It has only three main ingredients and no chilies, lemongrass, galangal or shrimp paste. Many curry pastes actually include garlic, coriander root and pepper among their ingredients, so sam glur can be thought of as a small foundation that curry pastes build on.

Feature	Sam glur paste	Thai curry paste (e.g., red or green)
Number of ingredients	Three main ingredients	Many, often ten or more
Color	Pale beige to ivory	Deep red, orange or bright green
Heat	Mild, peppery warmth	Often strongly spicy from chilies
Typical aromas	Garlic, earthy coriander root, pepper	Lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime, chilies, shrimp paste
Main uses	Marinades, stir-fry bases, clear soups, meatballs	Curries, often cooked with coconut milk

Sam glur paste also differs from a Western-style garlic and pepper rub. The coriander root adds an earthy, herbal depth that garlic and pepper alone do not have, and Thai cooks usually pair it with fish sauce rather than plain salt.

What can you substitute in sam glur paste, and what are the limitations?

If you cannot find every ingredient, you can still make a useful version of sam glur paste, but each swap changes the flavor somewhat.

• No coriander roots: use the thick lower stems of a coriander bunch, roughly double the amount. The paste will be greener in color and grassier in taste, with less earthy depth.
• No white peppercorns: use black peppercorns. The flavor will be more aromatic and fruity and less musky, and the paste will show dark specks.
• Only ground white pepper: it works for convenience. Stir it in after pounding the roots and garlic. Expect a flatter, weaker aroma than freshly ground peppercorns give.
• No mortar and pestle: mince finely with a knife and crush with the flat of the blade, or use a small food processor. The paste will be less juicy and aromatic than a pounded one.

How should you store sam glur paste?

Sam glur paste is best made fresh, because its aroma fades and the raw garlic flavor changes as it sits. If you make extra, put it in a clean, airtight container in the refrigerator and use it within a few days. For longer storage, freeze it in small portions, such as in an ice cube tray, and add the cubes straight to the pan or marinade. Do not keep raw garlic paste covered in oil at room temperature; always keep it chilled or frozen.