Last updated on September 27th, 2017 at 05:44 pm
This homemade Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables is one of my go-to-meals. Made with coconut milk, ginger, lemongrass, fresh herbs and loaded with fresh veggies!
This Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables is extremely flavorful, healthy, easy to make and all those vegetables make me happy! So much better than take-out!
I fell in love with Thai food after taking a month long class on Asian cuisine. Thai food was by far one of my favorites.
Thai cuisine is a constant balancing act of flavors. Hot, sour, sweet and salty must be in perfect harmony to deliver a well rounded dish.
Thailand has four major regional cuisines, Southern Thailand is well known for its seafood, fiery flavors and the use of coconut milk. Central Thailand is known for their noodle dishes, stir fry, sweeter flavors and a strong Chinese influence. Their curries are creamier and palm sugar and coconut milk are commonly used.
The Northeast Thailand region is well known for their grill meats and lighter fare. Salads are very popular in this region. Fish based condiments like fish sauce and paste are prevalent.
Northern Thailand is big on pork and offal (organ) dishes. Strong, funky, bold flavors and spices are what they are all about!
By all means I am not, neither I claim to be a Thai food expert. I have many Thai chef friends that I love and respect and this Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables is my interpretation of their beautiful cuisine. My family loves it and and everyone I serve this to always lick their plate clean! That is always a good sign.
Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables
One can get overwhelmed by the ingredients on any ethnic cuisine. Thankfully, most of the ingredients use on this recipe are available in the Asian area of any supermarket. Also, if you have a local Asian store in your area go and make friends! I don’t always know what the labels say, but everyone is always friendly, willing to answer my questions and point me to the right item. Amazon.com of course is also a great source for ingredients.
Red curry paste, coconut milk and fish sauce have become staples and easy to find everywhere. Now, what if you cannot find things like lemongrass and Keffir lime leaves (lime leaves are optional in this recipe)? Well, I have a great substitute for lemongrass and I will list it in the notes. Don’t let the ingredients intimidate you. Trust me this Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables is so rich and delicious that it will become a new favorite!
The 1-2-3 Quick Guide on Making This Curry:
- We saute the aromatics in oil (garlic, onion, ginger, lemongrass, curry paste)
- We make the curry (wet saucy) part. Add the coconut milk, broth, fish sauce, etc. Here we balance all the salty components with some sugar! Simmer until you have a nice creamy concoction.
- We cook the meat and vegetables in the delicious curry. Whatever take the longest to cook goes first! Finish up with herbs. Done!
Kathy’s Notes
- I’ve been using Mae Ploy Red Curry Paste for years but it seems to me that Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste is easier to find in most markets. They are both good.
- You can use lime or lemon zest if you can’t find lemongrass. Lime juice is also a good substitute. If you have a couple of mint leaves, add them too. That will get you closer to the flavor of lemongrass.
For this Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables recipe the zest or juice of a small lemon or lime will do. - Check for lemongrass paste in tubes by the produce area – right by the herbs! That works well also.
- Before serving, remove the lemongrass stalks from the curry. They are woody and not pleasant to eat unless they are finely chopped.
- Did you know lemongrass is very easy to grow in pots? You can grow it from a stalk. Just put it in a bit of water until it grows roots. Then plant it in a pot.
- Both red curry paste and fish sauce keep for a very long time in the refrigerator. Unless a date is indicated, fish sauce can last for years.
- If you are not familiar with fish sauce, beware – it doesn’t have a pleasant smell. Trust me your food will taste amazing!! No need to gag or worry.
- I always serve this curry over rice – to soak up all the deliciousness-curry-ness! (totally a word guys, no need to google it!)
- Love Thai food? Check out this Satay with Spicy Peanut Sauce recipe!
- 1 tablespoon of coconut oil vegetable oil or olive oil
- 5 garlic cloves peeled and finely chopped
- 1- inch piece ginger peeled and minced
- 1 small onion or shallot sliced
- 2 stalks lemongrass white parts only, pounded or ½ teaspoon lime or lemon zest
- 1-2 tablespoons red curry paste
- 2 cans coconut milk
- 3 Kaffir lime leaves optional
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce or tamari
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar coconut sugar or turbinado sugar
- 2 carrots peeled and thinly sliced into ¼-inch thick rounds
- 4 boneless and skinless chicken breasts cut into thin slices
- 1 medium red bell pepper cut into thin strips
- 1 zucchini cut into ¼-inch rounds
- 1-2 cups of broccoli florets
- 4 sprigs of Thai basil or regular basil or a combination of both, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped plus more for garnish
- lime wedges for garnishing
- Heat the oil in a large heavy bottom pot over medium low heat, add the garlic, ginger, onions or shallots and lemongrass. Sautee for 5-8 minutes stirring frequently making sure the garlic doesn’t get brown. Smash the lemongrass with a wooden spoon to release its oil. Add the red curry paste and sauté for a couple of minutes. Pour in the coconut milk, Kaffir lime leaves if using, chicken broth, fish sauce, soy sauce or tamari and brown sugar. Mix well to combine and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 12-15 minutes or until the sauce thickens a bit. Add the carrots and chicken and cook for about 8 minutes. Add the red bell pepper and zucchini and cook for another 4-5 minutes or until the red bell peppers and zucchini softens. Add the broccoli florets, basil and cilantro. Mix well, cover the pot and cook for a couple of minutes. The broccoli cooks pretty fast so keep an eye on it. Remove the lemongrass before serving.
- Serve garnished with extra basil and cilantro if desired and lime wedges.
Things You May Need
Coconut Milk
Red Curry Paste
Fish Sauce
Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
Lemongrass
everything we make from Kathy’s blog is delicious and we keep trying everything. yum yum nom nom nom
Thank you!! It’s a labor of love
Thai food is one of my favorite cuisines, it is flavorful and spicy too which I really enjoy. Nice version for a red curry now I am craving this for dinner tonight =)
Thank you
This looks really good. I like Thai food but I am not too familiar with all of its intricacies. I need to make this recipe!
You do!! You won’t regret it
I love how many fresh veggies are in here! We’re big thai fans, so I look forward to trying this.
Yes! I like to add lots of veggies. Thank you
I’ve never really ate a lot of Thai food but the flavor combinations sound good. Such a colorful dish and it’s always a great sign when everyone licks the bowl clean 🙂
Yes!!!! Thank you
I love Thai food but I haven’t tried making it yet. I should!!! This doesn’t sound too hard, I just need to get my hands on some curry paste 🙂 I love your chopsticks!
Thank you Sarah.
I love thai food. Give me all the coconut milk, curry and ginger any day of the week and I’ll gobble it down. This chicken and curry with vegetables looks delicious and I can’t wait to serve it to my family and show them a little bit of thai cuisine.
Thank you!!
There’s so much to love about this!! So colorful and so full of flavor. Can’t beat it.
Thank you
I can see why this is one of your go-to dishes. It’s so beautiful and I love how it’s packed with so many tasty veggies!
Thank you
Wow what a beautiful and comprehensive guide to making authentic Thai food! We also love good Thai food here. We e been to Bangkok and khao lak and the food is incredible. My hubby especially likes the red curry so I’ll have to try this out for dinner tomorrow night!
How exciting! Thailand is one of the places I want to visit (one for the bucket list). Thank you for your kind comment.
We happen to love curry. There is something about coconut milk, the aroma is so appealing. This sounds delicious, filling…and I know the leftovers would be great the next day too. Love all the healthy veggies in this dish.
Yes to amazing leftovers!!!! Thank you
A very interesting read about the Thai cuisine, I was not very familiar with it before. Your curry looks and sounds amazing, such a great combination of flavours and textures. I only had the Indian version of curry before and would love to give this one a go.
Thank you! It’s very different from Indian curry. Hope you love it as much as we do
Kathy, I know absolutely nothing about Thai cuisine or cooking it, but I do know a thing or two about what looks delicious – and this dish looks sooooooo delicious! We head out every Sunday night to dinner, just to give me a break from cooking and meal prep. And we always want to try a different restaurant, but always end up back at our favourite Thai place. One Sunday, not today, but soon, I’m going to try this dish at home and see what everyone thinks. Can’t wait!
Thank you! try it at home Byron. You’ll love it!
I love red curry! Yours looks fabulous with all of those colorful vegetables. I’m going to be making it very soon!
Thank you Amy
Thai red curry is literally my go to when I have no idea what to make for lunch or dinner. It’s so easy to throw together and it always tastes so good regardless of what you throw in ?
You are right! Always turns out amazing!
Thai red curry is my absolute favorite when I make any Thai dishes at home or when I eat out in restaurant. I have a great recipe to make my own red curry paste as I have a hard time finding vegetarian red curry paste at stores. The curry looks just delicious!
Thank you
I’ve been getting interested, lately, in starting to cook Thai food. You make me even more interested! I need to try this!
It’s actually easy and oh so delicious! You can also just do vegetables or seafood and fish with the same curry base
I love the colors in this – SO pretty. The flavors in thai food is also a big favorite of mine. Can’t wait to try this deliciousness!
Thank you!!!
So many delicious flavors and texture here! Thanks for the reminder that I need to make curry soon!!!
Thank you
This is such a colorful and healthy dish, Kathy! I will prepare it for my family for our next family gathering.
Thank you! Hope you guys love it as much as we do!
I love Thai food but was never brave enough to cook it at home until I found your recipe. You are very detailed regarding ingredients and the steps to follow so I no longer feel overwhelm. Thank you. This curry was excellent and very easy to make. We found lemongrass paste and used that instead of fresh. It turned out just like in a restaurant.
Thank you Ariel!!
What a delicious recipe!! I prepared this when my in laws came to visit from Oregon and they love it. I had to Print the recipe before they left!!!! They love your Blog too!! You made my life so easy with your delish recipes ❤