Thai-Style Red Chicken Curry
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This fragrant Thai chicken curry is a one-pan dish that comes together in just 30 minutes.
I love cooking Thai-style food at home because there are so many recipes that you can create with just a few staples from the Asian food aisle of your neighborhood supermarket. This red chicken curry is case in point: a one-pan dish of tender chicken simmered in a rich, red curry-infused coconut milk sauce, it comes together in just 30 minutes with minimal prep work.
In developing the recipe, the biggest challenge was determining the best way to cook the chicken. Most recipes call for sautéing the chicken first and then warming it in the finished sauce. But the problem with that method, if you’re using white meat, is that the chicken tends to dry out quickly. I found that gently poaching the chicken in the coconut sauce is not only easier but also foolproof. You’ll be so pleased with how tender the chicken turns out when cooked this way!
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Thai-Style Red Chicken Curry
Before we get to the step-by-step instructions, a few words about the ingredients:
- Red curry paste is a blend of lemongrass, galangal (Thai ginger), fresh red chilis, and fragrant spices. The spice level will vary depending on the brand of curry paste you use. The brand I use above (Thai Kitchen) makes for a mild, family-friendly dish. For more heat, you can always add a drizzle of Sriracha, some of the seeds of the jalapeño, or some crushed red pepper flakes.
- Be sure to use full-fat coconut milk. The sauce won’t have the same smooth, thick consistency with the reduced-fat variety.
- Fish sauce is a salty, savory condiment often used in East Asian cuisine. It adds a rich umami flavor to sauces, marinades, and salad dressings.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Heat the oil over medium-low heat in a large nonstick pan. Add the light scallions, garlic, and jalapeño. (The dark green scallions are used as a garnish at the end, as they are mild in flavor and pretty, too.)
Cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Do not brown.
Add the coconut milk, red curry paste, fish sauce, and brown sugar.
Bring to a gentle boil and simmer until thickened, a few minutes.
Add the chicken pieces.
Simmer, stirring occasionally to promote even cooking, until the chicken is cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes.
Stir in the lime juice, dark scallion greens, and cilantro. Taste and adjust seasoning with more lime, if necessary.
Serve with jasmine rice.
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Thai Red Curry Chicken
This fragrant Thai chicken curry is a one-pan dish that comes together in just 30 minutes.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 small bunch scallions, thinly sliced, light and dark green parts divided
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and diced (see note)
- 1 (14-oz) can coconut milk (unsweetened)
- 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2½ tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
- 1½ pounds chicken tenderloins, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon lime juice, from 1 lime
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Heat the oil over medium-low heat in a large nonstick pan. Add the light scallions, garlic, and jalapeño and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Do not brown.
- Add the coconut milk, red curry paste, fish sauce, and brown sugar and whisk together. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat and simmer until thickened, a few minutes. Add the chicken and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally to promote even cooking, until the chicken is cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes. (Do not let the sauce boil; the idea is to cook the chicken gently so that it's tender.) Stir in the lime juice, dark scallion greens, and cilantro. Taste and adjust seasoning with more lime, if necessary. Serve with jasmine rice.
- Note: As always, take care when working with jalapeño peppers. If you touch the seeds or ribs, be sure to wash your hands well and avoid touching your eyes.
- Note: It's important to wait until you're ready to eat to cook the chicken. If you want to get a head start, prepare the sauce up until the point when the chicken is added. Take it off the heat and then poach the chicken right before serving. If the chicken sits in the hot curry sauce for too long before serving, it will overcook.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 649
- Fat: 51 g
- Saturated fat: 26 g
- Carbohydrates: 16 g
- Sugar: 10 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 35 g
- Sodium: 886 mg
- Cholesterol: 128 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Can I use coconut sugar instead of brown sugar?
Hi Mya, I’ve never used coconut sugar, but I suspect it should work here. I’d love to hear how it turns out!
Next time I’ll double the recipe. Made this dish in the slow cooker. Incredible. Super flavourful. Thank you @onceupachef
Sandy, Would love to know how you did it in the slow cooker. Sounds like a perfect way.
Thanks.
This is a keeper in our dinner rotation! So fresh tasting and delicious! We ate it with riced cauliflower to keep it all low carb. Will make with shrimp next time!
Jen, my daughter and I have made so many of your recipes! I go to your site every week to plan the meals and shopping for the week ahead. I never worry if a recipe is going to turn out, because they all do! Thank you!
Can I use the low fat coconut milk? Thanks for all your amazing recipes!
I don’t recommend it, Tracy. I’m sorry!
I love the recipe but used the low fat coconut milk and though it was good, it was more runny.
Can i use coconut cream ?
Hi Olivia, It will thick, but it should work. Enjoy!
100% would make again
Felt the fish sauce Was too overpowering for the dish. Tried to use more lime juice to get rid of that fishy taste however it didn’t help.
Use good quality fish sauce and it won’t be “fishy”. I recommend Red Boat. It’s the only brand that I use.
I’ve made this twice now and so delicious. Cooking the chicken in the curry sauce is what makes this so good. Both times I added some veggies. Once cooked in pan with garlic, etc and once cooked separately and then added to the bowl of jasmine rice and chicken curry. I used Thai basil since I’ve got a nice pot of it.
My kids are picky eaters, but I was craving some Thai food. I found this recipe and added a red bell pepper and only used half of the jalapeño. My kids ate it up and loved it! I will definitely make again! Thank you!
Fabulous and easy to make! I did not have the red Thai paste so we used the green paste (from the same brand). The flavors were excellent as well. I did find adding an additional tablespoon of green paste gave us the best flavor profile. We enjoyed the stronger green curry taste.
Kids spooned up everything and thought it was better than our local Thai restaurant. Next time, I will double the recipe since everyone wanted more.
Thank you Jenn! Another wonderful recipe
Made this tonight. Super easy and SO DELICIOUS!! I omitted the jalapeño and added red bell pepper to keep It mild for my 4 year old granddaughter. She loved it and so did her parents.
I made this last week and it was totally delicious, I’m making it again tonight. So full of flavour and very tender chicken. Well done a super recipe, I will be trying more of yours👏👏👏
Thanks for the great recipe! I substituted sugar for honey and also added chopped coriander stalks to scallions and jalapeno in the beginning (from another recipe). Excellent!
However, your advice about steaming the veggies separately is spot on! I sort of missed it and added zucchini and champignons raw towards the end of the process. That was a mistake – everything turned out very tasty, but taste and creaminess of coconut milk were gone for all the extra liquid that came from veggies and mushrooms. So I will follow your advice next time and I’m sure it will be even better!
Outstanding recipe. Our family is knowledgeable and experienced with Thai foods. I added thin stripes of red and yellow bell pepper and Thai peppers for heat. Thank you for this wonderful and easy recipe. ALL OF YOUR RECIPES ARE 5 STARS.
Hi Jen – I couldn’t get any Jalapeño peppers- would red pepper flakes substitute Thank you!
Soogan
Sure – they’ll add a slightly different flavor, but they will definitely work to add a bit of heat. Enjoy!
Our 6 year old wanted to give you 10 stars for this dish! I have yet to make one of your recipes that our family hasn’t devoured. This was my 1st attempt at curry, and the chicken was so soft. Tossed in sauteed mushrooms, onions, and haricot verts. Fantastic!!!
Forgot to add a few items, since I so appreciate other reviewers comments… I omitted the jalapeno for our son, so if you need to but find you are missing a little kick, adding a little sambal oleak wound up being a perfect tableside addition. Based on other reviews, I reduced the brown sugar by half a TBSP (could reduce more), increased the lime by about about a TBSP just to use it up (plus I love lime). I seasoned the cut up chicken with salt & pepper, plus a little of the red curry paste, and let it marinate while I cooked the rice & chopped up the aromatics. I was nervous about making this because my hubby isn’t a huge fan of dishes that are heavy on fish sauce or coconut milk flavor, but don’t shy away from this recipe. Jenn has balanced everything so beautifully in this sauce! It is insanely delicious! I would gladly have made a bowlful of the sauce as soup. Next time, trying it with peas & potatoes, possibly eggplant. What a phenomenal dinner with leftovers for tomorrow! Thanks again!!
Thank you, Jenn! I’ve been cooking more at home and followed some of your recipes which were all resulted in success. This one though, absolutely outstanding! We love Thai food and I can tell this is the BEST EVER red curry chicken we’ve had. We have three picky eaters and we can never find a recipe that satisfies all but this one did it. Shocking!!!
I doubled the recipe with increasing the cooking time and substituted the jalapeño with yellow bell pepper (kid-friendly version) and added boiled and rinsed peas at the end based on your instructions in your comments. Served with Jasmine rice and viola!
P.S. I was intimidated by the dish/cuisine but after reading your recipe, I’m glad I gave it a go! Now I have more confidence in getting out of my comfort zone, I’ll try your chicken tikka masala tomorrow and this one again with green curry. Can’t wait!
All of the recipes I’ve made from this site have been outstanding, but this one….the word outstanding doesn’t do it justice. This is BETTER than any Thai restaurant version I’ve ever had. “Absolutely amazing” were the words my husband used. Jenn, you have outdone yourself with this. It deserved 10 star. I served with your Thai Cucumber Salad (another incredible dish) and Jasmine rice.
So glad you enjoyed!!
Made this recipe with a few additions and tweaking to the method the second time around.
Sautéd the red curry paste with a 2tsp of chopped ginger and the chopped garlic, addional red chilli (morter and pestal) with about a tbsp of canola oil
Then added the cubed chicken thigh meat ant sautéed that for a few min.
Once I can see a bit of the paste stick to the bottom of the pot, I added the coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice and lemon grass then reduced the heat to a medium low simmer covered. 20 mins.
Added broccoli florets, thinly sliced bell pepper, and bamboo shoots. Simmer 10 mins.
This method seemed to release more of the red curry flavour for our liking. We found the store bought paste on its own a bit too mild for us, and decided to amp up the flavour by lightly sautéing the paste with the chicken first.
The recipe overall is a great intro to Thai cooking. Thank you Once upon Chef.
Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
I Made this last night and it was INSANELY GOOD – comparable to what you’d find in Thailand!! (I’ve spent a month there so have eaten a fair amount of authentic Thai curry). An added bonus is how quick and easy it is to make. I found the Thai Kitchen brand red curry paste a bit mild for my taste, so I added some cayenne pepper for extra heat and it was perfect. I will definitely be making this again soon! Thank you Jenn!!
I made this tonight and it turned out great! I appreciated you focusing on technique informing us non-savvy cooks to avoid boiling the sauce. It made all the difference in the world. My husband is a very picky eater and cleaned his plate! I did listen to other reviews and added salt and pepper to the chicken prior to cooking and added some veggies to the dish as well. I may add a touch more spice next time but will definitely be making it again! Thank you!
I’ve been making Thai red curry chicken for some years now and the recipe I have always used (no idea where I found it) is almost identical to this one, except I use a shallot instead of scallions. It is a great recipe and very simple. I make my own Thai green curry paste but find buying ready-made red curry paste makes sense. A couple of things I would say; I use about half the sugar, maybe less but keep adding a bit until I just get that hint of sweetness the dish needs. Not sweet, just a hint to balance the saltiness, sourness and creaminess of the other ingredients. To the reader who said they find the chicken needs more seasoning, try mixing a bit of the curry paste really well into the raw chicken and refrigerate for an hour or so to marinate before adding to the sauce. I use chicken breast but slice it quite thin (rather than chunks). It seems to stay moist during the cooking process better. I know you use tenders Jenn. One other ingredient I sometimes add is peanut butter. Sounds a little weird I know but it adds some richness which I like.
Thanks for your great recipes Jenn. All I have made have been a resounding success, especially the beef stew with carrots and potatoes.
Can I try to make this with country pork boneless ribs? How do you suggest cooking it…the same way as I would for the chicken? Love this recipe and have made it many times! Hubby accidentally bought lite coconut milk this week though…hope it’s not too watery.
Glad you like it! Unfortunatley, I don’t think it would translate well to ribs — sorry!
Excellent recipe
What do you do if you want to add vegetables to this dish? Like slices of onion, pepper, squash, potato?
Hi Michele, this is a dish that lends itself well to adding veggies; I’d suggest steaming them separately and adding them at the very end, so they don’t soak up all the curry sauce. Enjoy! 🙂
This is a really good recipe for Thai Curry. Great flavor, but it could be a bit hot for some folks, especially with the jalapeno. I used Panang curry in place of red curry, big mistake- it is MUCH hotter than red. Husband was sweating, both of us had tears, my nose was running – and we like hot & spicy foods (used to have a salsa business!) Next time I’ll either halve the amount of curry or use a combo of Panang & red. I did not use jalapeno and won’t next time. I added diced red bell pepper to the onions & garlic, and at the end added halved snow peas which I had blanched. It was great, even though I made it too hot!
This is a big hit with my family. It tastes similar to our favorite Thai restaurant’s curry. I will often substitute green curry for the red. It’s a bit spicier but that’s how we like it. Thank you so much for all your recipes including the cookbook. It’s been a blessing in our lives especially during this stressful time.
This is delish! Spicier than I expected but it was well received!
I added some veggies to it but just because I had them to use up! Great either way!
Spectacular, recipe is spot on! Can’t wait to make it again! Thank you!
Delicious, easy to follow, and ready in under 30 minutes. This is the first recipe I have made from your blog, but I have already purchased your cookbook! I’m can’t wait to explore more of your creations. Thank you, Jenn!
Hi Jenn. I’ve made many wonderful recipes from your site. Thank you! This one, however, didn’t quite work. I used the exact ingredients, including full-fat coconut milk, followed the instructions to a T, and my sauce didn’t thicken. The flavours were delicious and the chicken was cooked perfectly but the sauce was a disappointment.
Sorry this was a bit of a miss for you! If you try it again, let it simmer a bit longer before adding the chicken – it will eventually thicken up.
SO MUCH BETTER THAN take out! Perfect amount for family of 4 and added steamed broccoli to the finished pan at the end. The sauce was tastier than what I get from our local thai place. I have kids so the jalapenos were sliced and reserved for topping my husband’s plate at the end. Thank you for a real winner that I will make again and again.
Hi Jenn, I’m constantly raving about your site to everyone, and this recipe is one of the reasons why. Our daughter lives in Thailand and we had Khao Soi on a visit. This tastes so much like it. I didn’t have red curry paste so I substituted Sambal Oelek and added extras that I found as ingredients in the red curry paste (tumeric, cumin, ginger, lemon zest – I didn’t have coriander or cardamom) and it was delicious. I also had pad Thai noodles which I used instead of rice. Thanks for making cooking fun again. 😊
Thank you for spreading the word about the blog (and so glad you like this chicken)! 🙂
THIS IS SO EASY, AND GOOD. I DIDN’T HAVE ALL THE COCONUT MILK, SO I PUT IN SOME DICED TOMATOES, AND POTATOES INSTEAD OF RICE. YUM. THANK YOU.
This was delicious! I will definitely make it again!
My first curry dish ever and it was a success! I was very cautious about the amount of jalapeno to add in, so I was adding it little by little throughout the cooking. In the end, I eventually used up 1 whole red piece, just like what’s in the recipe (looks like I might have to increase the amount of jalapeno on my next attempt as we like it more spicy.) Then I lightly fried some red bell peppers and carrots in butter separately, and added them towards the end of the curry cooking. Fortunately, I found some Thai Kitchen ingredients from a nearby grocery, so I was able to use the same brand of red curry paste and fish sauce, as shown in this recipe. I’m happy I have chosen to follow your recipe against the many others available in the internet, as I found yours quite straightforward and non-intimidating, especially to beginners like me. Thank you so much for doing what you do, and helping cooking newbies like me whip up some great-tasting dishes without the complexities.
Just a question, in your experience, how long do you think this dish would last when stored in a sealed container, inside the refrigerator or freezer? Thank you in advance for your answer.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe and found it easy to follow! This should last in the fridge for up to 3 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months. 🙂
Really tasty recipe! I used thighs and followed the instructions provided in one of the other postings where someone asked how to cook them (which is before you add the garlic and jalapeño). I cooked them along with some yellow pepper and mushrooms and placed them on a platter and then made the curry sauce. After I had the chicken and veggies back to the pan along with some broccoli I steamed the day before. Lastly, my family prefers basil so I used it instead of coriander (although I would have a liked a combo of each).
I was definitely missing some veggies on my first attempt, so I took the advice of adding steamed veggies the second time around. I reduced the amount of chicken to 300g and completed the remaining 400g with a mix of baby corn, long beans, red bell pepper, and Japanese eggplant. Jackpot!!!
Next time, I’ll be doubling the whole recipe cause we just couldn’t get enough! Oh, and please consider serving some roti alongside to mop up the curry sauce 😀
Do you think you could use honey instead of brown sugar (I can tolerate honey, but not sugar)?
Sure, Tiffany — you may need just a touch less than the 2.5 T as honey is a little sweeter than sugar. Hope you enjoy!
Hi Jen. I accidentally bought green curry paste instead of the red curry paste. Do you think the recipe will still work? If not, do you by any chance have any other recipes that use green curry paste?!
Hi Heather, it’s perfectly fine to use green curry paste as the red and green varieties are pretty interchangeable in recipes. Keep in mind that green curry paste can be a little spicier than red (but the spice level varies depending on the brand). And a recipe of mine that uses green curry paste is this one for Thai Chicken Noodle Soup. Hope that helps! 🙂
My son went to Thailand two years ago as a new high school grad who enjoyed cooking and stayed with relatives who are definite foodies. He traveled with them and sampled all kinds of Thai food as well as had cooking lessons from professional chefs in their gourmet kitchen. I made this tonight and he looked up from his bowl to ask if it was difficult to make (to which I responded no) and said it was his new favorite, that I should make it a lot. I had made it with shrimp so I commented that I would likely make it with chicken next time as it would be more cost effective, ‘I’ll pay you $10 to not do that’ he said. That speaks volumes coming from a broke college student.
🙂
Glad he enjoyed it!
Loved this. Wonderful sauce. Has anyone substituted shrimp for the chicken? Anne
Hi Anne, I have a shrimp version here if you want to check it out. 🙂
We really enjoyed this, so easy, however I have to give this recipe 4 stars because there was no salt nor pepper. The chicken should have been seasoned. I also sprinkled some red chili flakes on my serving.
Thanks Jenn.
I loved it! I added some sweet/ white potatoes and added the whole small jar of curry paste. Delicious!!
We loved it! I added chopped peanuts and some steamed veggies and it was perfect!
This is addictive. Probably my favorite dinner at the moment!
LOVE! This Thai red curry sauce is so delicious. This recipe is now a family favorite. I have this one memorized.
I’m a pretty good cook, so we eat some tasty meals. But still, my husband raved about this! He gave it a 10 and told me to make sure not to lose the recipe! I followed the recipe pretty closely, but I did cook the chili paste a minute with the oil before adding the jalapeño, onion and garlic. And I added one sliced green pepper along with the chicken because I love it in a curry sauce. The chicken was super tender, and in fact I’m going to stop trying to brown the chicken pieces in all my recipes that use boneless white meat. Great tip!
Super delicious and easy curry! We both loved it. Thanks again, Jenn, for another keeper!
I have made your recipe many times to family accolades (my adult son just made it last week and sent mouth watering pictures as well). I recently came across another curry chicken recipe from another major blogger and decided to try that as well as it had ingredients I happened to have on hand that differs from yours. And the results are in – your recipe was the clear winner! The aromatics blend in, the coconut milk adds smoothness and sweetness, and the fish sauce adds tang – wonderful!
I made this with chicken, red pepper, and zucchini, and it is delicious! Comes together pretty quickly too. I use mae anong red curry paste off of amazon because I don’t mind a little spice and find it to be amazingly flavorful compared to thai kitchen. I followed most of the instructions, except I do put the raw vegetables in with the chicken because I don’t want to precook them. I haven’t found it to have a noticeably bad effect, but the paste I use is stronger so that may help. I also typically add extra cilantro just to use it all up. One of my go-to dishes for college cooking. 🙂
Outstanding!! First time I made this I followed the recipe exactly. This time I made tiny, minor changes: Used a combo of red and panang curry paste, but same amount. Added a few mushrooms, red bell pepper and frozen carrots & peas (our favorite Thai restaurant’ s red curry always had mushrooms, peas & carrots – not many, just a few). None of the vegs affected the flavor. As far as the flavor profile goes, I wouldn’t change a thing!!