Thai Chicken Coconut Curry – An EASY one-skillet curry that’s ready in 20 minutes and is layered with so many fabulous flavors!! Low-cal, low-carb, and HEALTHY but tastes like comfort food!!
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Thai Chicken Curry with Coconut Milk
This is an easy Thai chicken curry that’s made in one skillet, ready in 20 minutes, and is naturally gluten-free. According to the computer-generated nutrition stats, there’s only 141 calories and 4 carbs per serving — no rice or naan included.
With cold weather upon us, nothing is better than diving into a bowl of this hearty yet healthy comfort food that’s layered with flavors. I could just drink the coconut milk-based sauce.
The Thai red curry is savory, salty, there’s natural sweetness from the sweet Vidalia onions, carrots, and coconut milk. There’s perfect acid balance from lime juice and a very gentle heat from the Thai red curry paste.
Since sharing this recipe in 2017, I’ve received almost 600 comments and 240+ five-star reviews on it. To say it’s a reader favorite is an understatement!
Thai Chicken Coconut Curry Ingredients
To make the easy Thai red curry recipe, you’ll need:
- Coconut oil
- Sweet Vidalia onion
- Chicken breasts
- Garlic
- Ground or fresh ginger
- Ground coriander
- Canned coconut milk
- Shredded carrots
- Thai red curry paste
- Fresh spinach
- Lime juice
- Brown sugar
- Fresh cilantro
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
Using Curry Powder vs Curry Paste
Thai red curry paste adds a richer and smoother flavor profile than curry powder (Indian) does, but if all you have is curry powder, go for it knowing that the flavor of Thai versus Indian curry products is vastly different and your dish won’t taste like mine.
How to Make Thai Red Curry
This is a very easy Thai curry recipe to make! Here’s how the coconut milk curry comes together:
- Add the oil and chopped onion to a large skillet and sauté until softened.
- Add the diced chicken and cook until done, then add the garlic, ginger, and coriander.
- Coconut milk, carrots, Thai curry paste, salt, and pepper are stirred in next, and then the mixture should be left to bubble away for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the spinach, lime juice, and optional brown sugar last.
I like to serve this coconut milk curry with a sprinkle of fresh cilantro to make the flavors pop.
Recipe Tips
Curry paste: As with all curry pastes and powders, they vary in intensity and everyone’s preferences for spice and heat vary, so adjust to taste. I used 2 rounded tablespoons and I wouldn’t call it spicy at all but very flavorful. My 10-year-old wasn’t at all phased by it but we like spicy food.
Veggies: If you have extra veggies you want to incorporate such as cauliflower, bell peppers, tomatoes, or edamame, add them when you add the coconut milk and carrots.
Meal Prep: Something I love about this Thai curry recipe is that the flavors deepen as the leftovers sit in the fridge. So feel free to make a big batch of curry before a busy work week to enjoy later on!
Storage Instructions
If stored in an airtight container in the fridge, this coconut milk curry will last up to five days.
Can You Freeze Red Curry?
Absolutely! I like to store smaller quantities in freezer bags to reheat at a moment’s notice. Frozen curry will last up to three months.
Ingredient Substitutions and Shortcuts
This is a very flexible chicken coconut curry recipe, so feel free to tweak the ingredients list as needed to use up what you have on hand.
- Coconut oil: May be substituted with olive oil.
- Chicken: Use shredded rotisserie chicken or meal prepped chicken instead to save time. Or, use a can of chickpeas to keep this dish vegetarian.
- Veggies: Mix and match the veggies to use up whatever is in your produce drawer.
- Ground coriander: Omit if you don’t have it on hand, but note that the curry won’t have quite the same depth of flavor.
What to Serve with Thai Chicken Curry
We like to serve this Thai chicken curry with naan bread, rice (brown, basmati, or white), or quinoa.
There are so many veggies in the curry itself that a vegetable side isn’t really needed, in my opinion. However, curry pairs nicely with steamed veggies or a crisp green salad.
Thai Chicken Coconut Curry
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 tablespoons coconut oil, olive oil may be substituted
- 1 medium/large sweet Vidalia or yellow onion, diced small
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, diced into bite-sized pieces
- 3 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed
- 2 to 3 teaspoons ground ginger or 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- one 13-ounce can coconut milk, I used lite; full-fat will deliver a richer/thicker result
- 1 to 1 ½ cups shredded carrots
- 1 to 3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste, or to taste (curry powder may be substituted, to taste)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
- about 3 cups fresh spinach leaves
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 to 2 tablespoons brown sugar, optional and to taste
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped for garnishing (basil may be substituted)
- rice, quinoa, or naan, optional for serving
Instructions
- To a large skillet, add the oil, onion, and sauté over medium-high heat until the onion begins to soften about 5 minutes; stir intermittently.
- Add the chicken and cook for about 5 minutes, or until chicken is done; flip and stir often to ensure even cooking.
- Add the garlic, ginger, coriander, and cook for about 1 minute, or until fragrant; stir frequently.
- Add the coconut milk, carrots, Thai curry paste, salt, pepper, and stir to combine. Reduce the heat to medium, and allow mixture to gently boil for about 5 minutes, or until liquid volume has reduced as much as desired and thickens slightly.
- Add the spinach, lime juice, and stir to combine. Cook until spinach has wilted and is tender, about 1 to 2 minutes. Taste and optionally add brown sugar, additional curry paste, salt, pepper, etc. to taste.
- Evenly sprinkle with the cilantro and serve immediately. Curry is best warm and fresh but will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Thai Curry Recipes:
Favorite CHICKEN RECIPES HERE, CURRY RECIPES HERE, and RECIPES USING COCONUT MILK HERE.
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This is a fantastic recipe, thank you! I have made it twice with a few substitutions or omissions and it always turns out delicious. (Used fresh finely chopped chard instead of spinach, one time did not have cilantro…) I added yellow curry powder when I didn’t have quite enough red curry paste). Best of all, this is ready FAST. With a few pantry staples on hand and frozen chicken, this could be prepared in a hurry for unexpected guests. 10/10. Thanks Averie!
Thanks for the 5 star review, Heidi, and I’m glad to hear this turns out fantastic for you and that you’ve been able to make various swaps and substitutions based on what you have and that it turns out 10/10 for you!
If I wanted to make this with about 3lbs of chicken, would I need to triple all the other ingredients as well or does the sauce stretch enough for so much meat? Thanks
You would need to at least double the recipe. You could probably stretch the sauce if you double everything (although you are 3x’ing the chicken) and get by. I personally love the sauce and feel like it’s just so good so I would probably triple everything. However, I’ve never cooked 3x of it at once so I am not speaking from personal experience.
This is so delicious I make it quite often it’s just a very tasty dish
No fuss just a lovely easy to make meal
Thanks
Thanks for the 5 star review, Glenda, and I’m glad you make it often and that it turns out lovely for you!
Help! For this THAI CHICKEN COCONUT CURRY recipe, did you use sweetened or unsweetened coconut milk?
Unsweetened from a can – use full fat for more richness, lite will still work. Enjoy the curry!
WOW! Yummy curry!
Oh so easy. Make it tonight. My husband loves it!
Thanks for the 5 star review, Rojo, and glad this was so easy and your husband loves it, too!
This recipe is phenomenal and super easy! I used to make Japanese curry all the time because of the flavor but it takes a lot more prep than this curry (and I love coconut!). I would definitely add the brown sugar if your spice tolerance is a bit lower (mine is on the floor). I personally like to use coconut cream (it just makes it a bit thicker!) and I use S&B Curry powder because I hear its a bit less spicy than regular curry powder. It tastes phenomenal either way! It tastes good with chicken or without and just having chickpeas as well! It tastes great with the spinach or without as well! I sometimes don’t have spinach on hand, but as someone who hates mushy spinach, this recipe seems to make it work! Tastes great with rice or bread!
Thanks for the 5 star review, Shina, and I’m so happy to hear that this was phenomenal and super easy for you! And it sounds like you’ve tried a variety of substitutions and swaps and that it comes out great for you every time which I just adore hearing!
This was delicious, I used a drizzle of honey (hot honey because we like some heat) instead of sugar and doubled up on the seasonings, used the full 3 tbsp of thai curry and also 3 tbsp of thai chili paste. It was tasty and had a kick but not too hot. My boys requested more sauce next time, it was not lacking but was so good they want it almost like a soup similar to what they had in a Thai restaurant before. I made summer rolls to go with it, will definitely make this again–great recipe!
Thanks for the 5 star review and for sharing your photo, Trish! WOW so professional looking! Summer rolls can be a bit tricky to roll well and you nailed those and glad to hear the curry was just right for you with the sweet/spicy/intensity! For the next time, add more coconut milk. Depending on all the variables, sometimes you need a bit more than one can. You can also add more spinach which will sweat out to create more liquid volume, but the failsafe is to use more coconut milk which is any easy tweak!
Like almost every Averie Cooks recipe, a working person without a culinary degree can actually make this and get good results. I might try it with shrimp at some point
Thanks for the 5 star review, Jennifer, and I appreciate that my recipes are approachable and do-able for you! That is always my goal – doesn’t matter how good it was for me, if it’s not accessible enough for everyone, no one will make it. So I am glad this was a winner for you!
I have been making this recipe w/chicken, shrimp, fish or tofu for almost 5 years now! It’s so easy & quick to make & never fails to be absolutely delicious. I always have ingredients to make it, & it makes the house smell amazing! I agree that Thai Kitchen red curry paste is the best to use. This is for sure a winning recipe – for ease, deliciousness, versatility & healthfulness!
Thanks for the 5 star review, Lulu, and I’m so glad you’ve been a loyal fan of this curry for 5 years and have made it with a variety of proteins and that it’s always a winner!
I have made this recipe countless times and it always turns out great! Super easy and fast, I’ve added different veggies that I happened to have on hand and wanted to use up. always a crowd pleaser
Thanks for the 5 star review, Cheryl, and I’m glad to hear that you’ve made it many times with many veggies and variations and it always comes out great!
Quick and easy recipe with wonderful flavors. It’s a Keeper for me.
Thanks for the 5 star review and I’m glad to hear this was quick, easy, and wonderful which is awesome!
Averie’s Thai chicken coconut Curry looks amazing! I can‘t wait to try this! Averie has the best recipes!
Thanks for your vote of confidence, Carol, with my recipes! That means so much – thank you!
Absolutely delicious! I cooked the chicken a little less than the recipe said to do (I don’t like overdone chicken) and it came out perfect!
Thanks for the 5 star review and yes always use your judgment with chicken since there are so many variables (exact temp used, pan size, chicken size, etc.) and glad it came out perfectly!
Tasted amazing!
Thank you so much, Glenda! That’s wonderful!
Good for a jumping off point. I wish I had seared the chicken first in coconut oil and seasoned, removed, deglazed with onion, garlic, ginger, and added coconut cream. I found it a bit on the bland side so I added ground cayenne, yellow curry powder, fish sauce, and a splash of soy sauce. The texture of the chicken could have been better IMO if seared first then added back in, but I’m very picky about chicken. Flavors were very nice and it would definitely be kid friendly as it was originally. I served it with leftover rice that I reheated with a little coconut cream and fried plantains. It was a hit.
Thanks for trying the recipe and it sounds like you have a jumping off point for the future if you make this again, or your version of it. It could be that your curry paste was more mild than mine (I use Thai Kitchen brand) but some cayenne pepper cures blandness so glad you added it!
This was a great easy ish recipe. For the red curry paste I think two is perfect if your family doesn’t like spicy but loves flavor. Next time I’m making a double batch to freeze
Thanks for the 5 star review, Eva, and glad you’re going to make a double batch next time and have enough to freeze!
Made this recipe a few times already. Loved it ! Added some thinly slice red peppers and changed the spinach to kale. Very delightful and creamy loaded with veggies.
Thanks for the 5 star review, Cindy, and I’m glad to hear you’ve made this a few times and have been loving it!