Ever since I posted my easy red curry recipe (still one of my favorite things to make on a busy weeknight…when all I want to do is sit on the couch in my pajamas with a big bowl of something over rice), I’ve been itching to make a Thai green curry chicken recipe as well.
If red curry is the high school homecoming queen, then green curry is kind of like red curry’s shy best friend. Just as good (maybe better), but a little on the mellower side. I’ll stop anthropomorphizing food now.
I love this green curry chicken, because it’s one of those useful fridge-cleaning recipes. I’ll let you in on a secret. I decided to blog this recipe kind of last minute, and planned on going out to the grocery store to buy ingredients. But…lo and behold, I realized that I already had chicken thighs in the freezer and cans of green curry paste, bamboo shoots, and coconut milk in the pantry.
I dug through the fridge and found a couple of carrots, a lone crown of broccoli, and a couple of zucchini. I quickly realized that I didn’t have to go out and buy ingredients at all––I could cobble something together with what I already had. This green curry chicken recipe is forgiving like that. You can use whatever vegetables you have on hand, and it’ll taste amazing no matter what.
Thai Green Curry Chicken: Recipe Instructions
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add 2 tablespoons oil. Toss the chicken pieces in 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon oil until well-combined. Sear the chicken pieces in the skillet until browned. Remove from the pan and set aside.
If there are a lot of chicken bits stuck to your pan, deglaze with a ¼ cup of water. Then add the sliced onions to the skillet and cook until translucent. Add the green curry paste and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the vegetables and cook for 30 seconds. Add the coconut milk, chicken stock, kaffir lime leaves (if using), chili oil or chili (if using), and the seared chicken pieces.
Bring to a simmer and lower the heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. After the curry has finished simmering, stir in the fish sauce, sugar, and Thai basil.
People will fault me for this, because that’s Italian basil in that there pot. But I couldn’t get myself to the Asian grocery store for the Thai basil, and honestly, Italian basil is okay if you can’t find Thai basil!
It might not be the authentic thing to use, but when my choices are: “green curry with Italian basil” and “no green curry,” I will ALWAYS pick the first choice.
And you’re done! Serve all that green curry chicken with steamed rice, garnished with cilantro if desired. As you can see, green curry is definitely a wetter dish than red curry. It’s almost soupy. This is what I’ve found to be true when I’ve had it at Thai restaurants, and I love it. Soaking up all that sauce with freshly steamed jasmine rice is the best.
Easy Green Curry Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons neutral oil (such as canola or vegetable oil, divided)
- 2 lbs chicken thighs (900g, cut into bite-sized pieces)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 medium onion (thinly sliced)
- 4 ounces green curry paste (115g)
- 5 cups mixed vegetables (such as broccoli, carrots, zucchini, bamboo shoots and/or red bell peppers)
- 13.5 ounces coconut milk (about 1 2/3 cups)
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock (355 ml)
- 5 kaffir lime leaves (lightly bruised, optional)
- 1 teaspoon chili oil (or 1 red chili, de-seeded and chopped, optional)
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1/4 cup basil leaves
- steamed jasmine rice (to serve)
- cilantro (to garnish, optional)
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add 2 tablespoons oil. Toss the chicken pieces in 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon oil until well-combined. Sear the chicken pieces in the skillet until browned. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- If there are a lot of chicken bits stuck to your pan, deglaze with a ¼ cup of water. Then add the sliced onions to the skillet and cook until translucent. Add the curry paste and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the vegetables and cook for 30 seconds. Add the coconut milk, chicken stock, lime leaves (if using), chili (if using), and the seared chicken pieces. Bring to a simmer and lower the heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. After the curry has finished simmering, stir in the fish sauce, sugar, and basil. Serve with steamed rice.
Tips & Notes:
nutrition facts
I just made this and it was great! PSA for those reading, I was short a halt pound of chicken and added a pound of cubed firm tofu. It worked well, and probably would with even just a pound of chicken. I used 1 cup of chopped broccolini, a 9×2 inch zuccchini, two skinny carrots, a bag of mini red and yellow sweet peppers in coarse strips and a third of a small jar of pickled daylily veg I kept forgetting to throw in a pile of stirfried noodles. The broc was soft but ok, no more carrots needed, peppers and lilies crisp but not offensively so. Maesri Green curry paste is on the high side of mild (meaning it isn’t uncomfortable to eat after a minute on the table, but it leaves a lasting low heat on the lips/mouth. Sweet pepper only people may take a pass on this one. Don’t fear the fish sauce, it blends and in a week you’ll be adding it to everything. I think it needs bean sprouts, but I think everything needs bean sprouts. Oh and this FILLS a 12 inch skillet. You also need a tennis racket when you open the red boat fish sauce. For the cats. Sarah, semi-random question, as far as chili oil goes, how far off would using the lao gan ma with beans instead of just the chili oil throw the flavors? I can see it working where there is deep dark soy, but what about others? Oh and thank you for addicting me to the stuff, I’ve put it on peanut butter sandwiches. I also poach, drain and pan-dry a full bag of the fermented beans (cuts the salt), then run two jars of the sauce through a food processor then again adding the beans and add it to everything. eggs, rice, bananas, canned mango over rice, the stuff is crack.
The chili oil with black beans could be substituted!
Do you think you could substitute firm tofu for the chicken? I don’t see why not… I plan on making this later in the week, but already have 2 chicken dishes planned, so need to do vegetarian one night.
Yes you can! I would suggest pan-frying the tofu first. Instructions here: https://thewoksoflife.com/tofu-black-bean-sauce/
Another great recipe! I found this recipe a bit too spicy though. Any tips on how to make the curry milder next time? I’ve made at least 10 recipes from your site this past year and they’ve all turned out fantastic! As a Chinese American who’s grown up eating at authentic Chinese restaurants, these are restaurant quality recipes.
Hi Winnie, you can always reduce the amount of curry paste you put in depending on your spice tolerance! You can also increase the amount of vegetables to make a larger batch, and increase the amount of coconut milk.
Can you do frozen vegetables with this recipe in Step # 3 instead of fresh vegetables?
Hi Linda, frozen soft vegetables (like broccoli, cauliflower, etc.) are quite soggy, and I don’t necessarily think they’d do well in this recipe, but you could definitely use frozen carrots and frozen peppers, as they do freeze quite well.
I really enjoyed this recipe! Tasted authenic and tasty like the restaurants!
Love hearing that, Mel! So glad you enjoyed it!
So Good! my husband loves green curry and said it was restaurant quality. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes!
Yay! So glad you and your husband enjoyed this dish. On to the next! :)
Thank you so much once more! This is probably the 3rd or 4th recipe I’ve tried from your website, though it is my first venture into Thai cuisine. And your recipes are foolproof – every, single one has been super delicious and easy to follow! This actually tasted like a green curry chicken dish I’d get at a Thai restaurant. (Admittedly, I did accidentally add a tablespoon of chili as opposed to a teaspoon, but a little extra spice never hurt anyone!) This is now my go-to resource if I’m looking for an Asian recipe (and I’m spreading the news to all my friends who love to cook). Tomorrow, I’m trying out the “Poor Man’s Thai Noodles”!
You’re welcome, Andrew!! We hope you enjoy those noodles as much as you enjoyed this curry. :)