Well, speaking for myself, I would suggest trying out a curry roux first if you can find it. A personal favorite of mine when I was first discovering curry is S&B Golden which I used to find in my grocer's for a little while until they decided to stop carrying it. Guess I was the only one who ate it...but it's a great introduction to curry just to see how it looks and experience its taste...and it has instructions on the box as well so it's really easy to make.
After that, what I've done is make a panaang-style curry, which is a combination of a red curry paste and a can of coconut milk, which again should be carried in the Asian food section of your local grocer. I tend to like my curry a little more on the hot side, so I use about half of a small jar of paste to half a can of coconut milk, but you can adjust the amount of paste and milk as you see fit based on how much curry sauce you want and how much heat you like. My measurements yielded the amount of curry you saw in my posted picture above--enough for about a pound and a half of stew meat and vegetables. I also am very likely not following the purest tradition of panaang curry creation, as I read that it also involves some other ingredients like kaffir lime leaves, but I personally found that this curry creation tastes pretty good without the other stuff. Though if you can add in spices like turmeric and paprika, that would definitely develop the flavors a lot more.
First, you put a bit of oil in a saucepan and toast whatever seasonings you plan to use for a bit until they become fragrant. Then, just put your coconut milk in and get it to a simmer, add your curry paste and keep whisking it over medium-low heat. I suggest taking little tastes as you go along to see where it is flavor-wise. If you need it a little thinner, add a bit more of the coconut milk. More paste = more spicy curry flavor. You can also sprinkle in some curry powder as well to kick it up, or whatever other seasonings you started with.
If you like thicker curry like me, you can also sprinkle a bit of all-purpose flour or a slurry (corn starch and water mixture) in to the sauce. Just keep that whisk moving constantly so you get a nice, smooth, lump-free curry. Also, take it off the heat and whisk it a bit longer to see how it sits after it comes off the flame--you might see that it sorta thickens up on its own when its not being simmered.
After that you just pour it in with your stewed beef or your cooked chicken and vegetable mix, simmer it for a few minutes to let everyone drink up the flavor, and enjoy. It's best served alongside or on top of some plain rice, in my opinion--I don't really like jasmine rice since all the rice is doing is providing a vehicle for curry to enter my face.
After that, what I've done is make a panaang-style curry, which is a combination of a red curry paste and a can of coconut milk, which again should be carried in the Asian food section of your local grocer. I tend to like my curry a little more on the hot side, so I use about half of a small jar of paste to half a can of coconut milk, but you can adjust the amount of paste and milk as you see fit based on how much curry sauce you want and how much heat you like. My measurements yielded the amount of curry you saw in my posted picture above--enough for about a pound and a half of stew meat and vegetables. I also am very likely not following the purest tradition of panaang curry creation, as I read that it also involves some other ingredients like kaffir lime leaves, but I personally found that this curry creation tastes pretty good without the other stuff. Though if you can add in spices like turmeric and paprika, that would definitely develop the flavors a lot more.
First, you put a bit of oil in a saucepan and toast whatever seasonings you plan to use for a bit until they become fragrant. Then, just put your coconut milk in and get it to a simmer, add your curry paste and keep whisking it over medium-low heat. I suggest taking little tastes as you go along to see where it is flavor-wise. If you need it a little thinner, add a bit more of the coconut milk. More paste = more spicy curry flavor. You can also sprinkle in some curry powder as well to kick it up, or whatever other seasonings you started with.
If you like thicker curry like me, you can also sprinkle a bit of all-purpose flour or a slurry (corn starch and water mixture) in to the sauce. Just keep that whisk moving constantly so you get a nice, smooth, lump-free curry. Also, take it off the heat and whisk it a bit longer to see how it sits after it comes off the flame--you might see that it sorta thickens up on its own when its not being simmered.
After that you just pour it in with your stewed beef or your cooked chicken and vegetable mix, simmer it for a few minutes to let everyone drink up the flavor, and enjoy. It's best served alongside or on top of some plain rice, in my opinion--I don't really like jasmine rice since all the rice is doing is providing a vehicle for curry to enter my face.