Quick and Easy Thai red curry chicken recipe, made with tender chicken and vegetables cooked in creamy, aromatic red curry sauce. With our easy-to-follow recipe, you can create restaurant-style red curry at home in less than 30 minutes!
If you like spicy Thai food and creamy coconut curry, this Chicken in Red Curry Sauce is a must-try! A well-balanced combination of spicy, creamy, savoury, umami flavour in one dish and its aroma is hard to resist!
If you love spicy dishes, you will love our creamy and spicy dishes like Peanut Butter Chicken and Thai Green Curry Chicken, which contains loads of hot green chillies in the curry paste.
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Ingredients
Chicken: Boneless chicken breasts or thighs are commonly used for restaurant-style red curry. However, you can also try bone-in chicken pieces, which authentic Thai households cook.
Vegetables: I used bell peppers, onions, bamboo shoots, and baby corn. Feel free to customize the vegetables according to your liking.
Fresh herbs: garlic, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, red chillies.
Thai Red Curry Paste: Use ready-made curry paste for this quick recipe.
Coconut milk: Use creamy full-fat coconut milk like Chaokoh or Aroy-D Thai coconut milk tins.
Fish sauce: is a must-add ingredient for Thai curry recipes.
Variations
- If you are tired of chicken, you can substitute other protein, such as prawns, fish fillets, squid, seafood, or beef.
- For the vegetarian option, you can even cook it with tofu without adding any meat.
- Kaffir lime leaves can be substituted with fresh lime zest.
- Substitute for coconut milk: double cream or heavy cream can be used instead of coconut milk, but the flavour might be different.
- Fish sauce substitute: use all-purpose soy sauce or adjust salt to taste.
Top Tips!
- Use a store-bought Thai red curry paste to make life easier so you can make this curry with less effort and less time.
- Add fish sauce! Fish sauce is one of the key ingredients to making your red curry dish taste like an authentic Thai dish.
- It has a distinct salty, sweet, savoury, earthy umami taste and flavour. If you have a small bottle at home, you can use it in dozens of popular Southeast Asian and Thai Dishes.
Instructions
Lets start by cutting chicken, bell pepper, onion and chilli into thin slices.
Roughly chop the garlic cloves. Slightly bruise the lemongrass and cut into half. Remove the hard centre part of kaffir lime leaves and cut into thin strips.
Heat the pan into medium heat, drizzle a tablespoon of oil. Saute lemongrass, and chopped garlic, and stir for few seconds.
Add the red curry paste and stir for few seconds until the nice fragrant comes out. Then add the paprika powder in, stir well.
Pour the coconut milk in, stir well and let it simmer for few seconds.
Add the chicken slices and cook for 2-3 mins. Pour the chicken stock and water, sugar and fish sauce in. Let it simmer another 1 min.
Add the onion and bamboo shoot strips, stir well for few seconds. Add pepper slices, stir well and cook for another 1-2 mins until the chicken and vegetables are cook through.
Then and chilli slices and kaffir lime leaves strips and stir well. Aromatic Thai Red Curry Chicken is ready! Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and lime slices.
Serves with a bowl of steamed rice. Enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
Red Curry Chicken is a perfect match for Thai steamed jasmine rice. Thin rice noodles are my second-best pairing combo. You can also pair it with Thai Spring Rolls, Tom Yum soup, or Easy Beef Pad See Ew ( Thai Stir Fried Rice Noodle ) to make it a complete Thai dinner.
FAQs
What type of red curry paste to use?
Mae Ploy and Maesari are popular red curry pastes, and I've tried them and enjoyed using them in my red curry recipes.
Do you need to refrigerate the red curry paste once it is opened?
Yes, you should keep the red curry paste in the fridge once it is open to preserve its freshness and flavour.
How to make it less spicy?
You can reduce the amount of red curry paste and add more coconut milk to mellow the chilli heat. Make sure to seal it tight to prevent it from spoiling.
You can also try out my milder curry recipes like Easy Sausage Curry, Japanese Chicken Curry, Chinese Curry with beef and Chicken Katsu Curry.
Can you store leftovers?
Let it cool down completely and store them in an an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can reheat it thoroughly before serving by adding a splash of water.
What is the origin of Thai red curry?
Authentic Red curry which is also known as ''Kaeng Phet'', is a very significant traditional cuisine in Thailand. Thai people have been cooking and eating it since ancient times and it was recognized as one of the Thai royal cuisines in history.
Not only in Thailand but also in Southeast Asia, the US, the UK, Australia, and Western countries, red curry has become the "most ordered chicken curry dish" on Oriental restaurants' menus.
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More Delicious Thai Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Easy Thai Red Curry Chicken
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 350 g Boneless chicken breast/thigh
- 2-3 cloves Garlic
- 1 Lemongrass
- ½ Bell pepper
- ½ Sweet onion
- ½ cup Bamboo shoot see recipe note for details
- 1-2 tbsp Oil
- 1 Red chilli optional
- 2 Kaffir lime leaves see recipe note for details
Curry Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Red curry paste see recipe note for details
- 1 cup Coconut milk
- ½ cup Chicken stock/broth
- ½ cup Water
- 2 tbsp Fish sauce
- 3 tbsp Sugar brown/white
- ¼ tsp Paprika
Garnish
- Coriander
- Fresh lime
Instructions
- Cut chicken, bell pepper, onion and chilli into thin slices.
- Roughly chop the garlic cloves. Slightly bruise the lemongrass and cut into half.
- Remove the hard centre part of kaffir lime leaves and cut into thin strips.
- Heat the pan into medium heat, drizzle a tablespoon of oil.
- Add lemongrass and chopped garlic and stir for few seconds.
- Add the red curry paste and stir for few seconds until the nice smell come out. Then add the paprika powder in, stir well.
- Pour the coconut milk in, stir well and let it simmer for few seconds.
- Add the chicken slices and cook for 2-3 mins.
- Pour the chicken stock and water, sugar and fish sauce in. Let it simmer another 1 min.
- Add the onion and bamboo shoot strips, stir well for few seconds.
- Add pepper slices, stir well and cook for another 1-2 mins until the chicken and vegetables are cook through.
- Then and chilli slices and kaffir lime leaves strips and stir well.
- Aromatic Thai Red Curry Chicken is ready! Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and lime slices.
- Serves with a bowl of steamed rice. Enjoy!
Notes
- If you use bamboo shoot tin, strain the water from the bamboo shoot tin and squeeze the water out from the bamboo shoot.
- Kaffir lime leaves brings citrus flavour to the dish. Only few amount need to use, overpowering can bring bitter taste to the dish.
- You can freeze the leftover kaffir lime leaves in airtight bag for future use.
- Substitute laffir lime leaves: If you cannot find kaffir lime leaves you can add ¼ teaspoon of lime zest as a substitute.
- Choice of curry paste: I've used Mae Ploy red curry paste in this recipe. You can use your favourite brand or any red curry paste available at your local stores.
Ian says
The most professional recipe site I have come across. An explanation on every aspect of the recipe.
Dave Hajra says
Amazing flavor. I will avoid the 1/2 cup water next time and the sauce will be richer and creamier. Perfect amount of spice with the red chili. Delicious