#i'm trying to make a thai inspired curry but it uses chickpeas which aren't a thing in thai cuisine

[briar--rising]

I really like the red curry at my local Thai restaurant, but last time I tried to make some at home it didn't turn out that well. It was okay, but not great. So I'm trying again with a different recipe, including a different brand of curry paste that is supposedly both more spicy and more flavorful than the one I used before. I'm really torn on how much curry paste to use. I want the dish to be very flavorful, and that's where most of the flavor comes from. But while I can handle some heat, I can't handle much. The recipe calls for 5 tablespoons, but recommends you do less if you can't handle heat/are using this spicier brand of curry paste. But she doesn't say how much less. I've been reading the comments and people have added wildly variable amounts, and it's impossible to tell from them what I should do because spice tolerance and flavor preference is such a personal thing. Maybe I'll start with half the amount and go from there? I just don't want it to be bland but also...I do not do super spicy food. Idk we'll see how it comes out.