Yellow Curry Thai - Easy Weeknight Recipe - Chocolate Covered Katie (2024)

Healthy Meal Ideas

by Chocolate Covered Katie

5 from 12 votes

A healthy and filling vegetarian Thai yellow curry recipe, packed with wholesomeness and flavor.

Yellow Curry Thai - Easy Weeknight Recipe - Chocolate Covered Katie (2)

The Best Thai Yellow Curry

Lately, I’ve been craving so much Thai food.

I’m lucky to have multiple good Thai restaurants near me, and I’ve been eating my fill of red and yellow curry, panang, massaman, pad khing, and so many other dishes these past few months.

It’s inspired me to begin creating my own versions of the Thai classics – after all, sometimes you don’t want to have to go out to a restaurant in order to satisfy your cravings for takeout. And this easy Thai yellow curry recipe can be made in your pajamas if you wish!

While I do have another Thai curry recipe on here—for —this time I wanted to create a recipe you can make without jarred curry paste and one with options to make it both soy and coconut-free so that everyone can enjoy it.

This is a mild curry dish, making it great for kids and those who aren’t big on spicy foods. However, you can easily make it a spicier curry if you’d prefer by simply adding a pinch of cayenne or a handful of diced chilies to the curry when you add the other vegetables. Adding extra fresh ginger also ups the spiciness. I kind of really love fresh ginger.

Like many Thai dishes, this homemade curry is versatile and can be modified to suit different dietary requirements. For example, I chose to add tofu this time but another protein source could easily be substituted. Or you can even leave the protein out altogether and simply add more vegetables to the curry instead. Chopped pineapple would also be a nice addition to the recipe.

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If you try the recipe, be sure to rate it and leave a review in the comment section below!

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Yellow Curry Thai Recipe

A healthy and filling vegetarian Thai yellow curry recipe that's, packed with flavor.

Yellow Curry Thai - Easy Weeknight Recipe - Chocolate Covered Katie (6)

Leave a Review

Print Recipe

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Yield 5 cups

5 from 12 votes

Ingredients

  • 1/2 a large onion, diced or thinly sliced
  • 1 tbsp oil or spray
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • 1 1/2 tsp curry powder
  • 1 tbsp minced ginger, or 1 tsp powdered
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 cup protein of choice, such as cubed tofu or chickpeas
  • 1 1/2 cup small broccoli florets
  • 1/2 bell pepper, thinly sliced
  • optional 1/2 cup baby corn
  • 13.5 oz coconut cream or milk, or cashew cream for coconut-free
  • 1 tbsp sweetener of choice
  • 1 tsp lime juice
  • optional garnishes, such as fresh basil, raw bell pepper, sliced cashews, etc.

Instructions

  • In a large pot or pan, sauté the onion in oil or spray over medium heat—stirring only occasionally—until it begins to brown. Stir in the next four ingredients, then stir in the protein, broccoli, bell pepper, corn, coconut milk, and sweetener. (I’ve only tried the recipe with full-fat canned coconut milk or cream, so sub lite or cartoned coconut/nondairy milk at your own risk.) Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat. Once boiling, remove the lid and check for doneness. If broccoli is not yet soft, continue to cook until desired broccoli softness is reached. Remove from heat, stir in lime, and garnish as desired. Leftover sauce will thicken considerably in the fridge because coconut milk thickens when chilled, so just reheat and then add a little extra milk if needed to thin it out again.

    Instant Pot Version: In saute mode, cook the onions and oil about a minute, or until onion starts to brown.Stir in the next four ingredients, then stir in the protein, broccoli, bell pepper, corn, coconut milk, and sweetener. Close and seal, then cook on manual for 3 minutes. Do a natural pressure release. Stir in lime, and garnish. Thanks to reader Hannah for creating this version and leaving a comment to let us know how to make the recipe in an instant pot!

    View Nutrition Facts

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You are here: Home / Healthy Meal Ideas / Yellow Curry Thai – Easy Weeknight Recipe

Published on July 27, 2017

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Reader Interactions

21 Comments

Leave a comment or reviewLeave a rating

  1. Kat Cupcake says

    This sounds delicious! I love curry

    Reply

  2. Kim H says

    Your other Thai curry recipe is one of our family staples. I love red curry paste, but will definitely try this one as well for something a little different.

    Reply

  3. Vanessa Osborne says

    Made this last night and it was so delicious!

    Reply

  4. Cassie Autumn Tran says

    Yellow curry is delicious, even though green curry is my number one favorite! Personally, I adore thick curries, so I wouldn’t mind it if the sauce was creamier!

    Reply

  5. Manuka Honey Singapore says

    Love india curry, With chicken and roti prata with it, it taste really good!

    Reply

  6. Sara says

    This was delicious! So quick and easy to make. I added just a little almond milk to thin it out and served with a side of rice. The whole family loved it. This dish is definitely going on our weekly menu, especially in the fall.

    Reply

  7. Samantha says

    This was amazing and so easy!

    Reply

  8. Mary says

    What kind of curry powder are you using?

    Reply

  9. Sandy says

    I made this on Sunday for dinner on Monday. My husband doesn’t like curry, so I used 3/4 of a teaspoon. He loved it, and so did I. He told me next time to use MORE curry. WOW, from someone who has always said “I don’t like curry”. Thank you Katie, for all of your wonderful recipes!

    Reply

  10. Paule says

    Made this recipe in my Instant Pot tonight an it is deliciously addictive!
    Will definitely make it again 🙂
    Thank You !

    Reply

  11. Dr Martin Huang says

    Nice. I will add in a few slices of chilli padi in to up the spice game.
    Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  12. Tasha says

    I modified recipe, because of our supermarkets, and surprisingly I didn’t ruined it! Sooo tasty!
    I put there white beans, as protein, cauliflower instead of broccoli, cartoned coconut cream and water, add brown rice noodles, also instead of baby corn I used fresh corn. It’s sooo goood! Thank you so much!

    Reply

  13. Melanie Scheetz says

    This was the most amazing recipe!! First, Katie, I tried twice to give you 5 stars…but it registered .5 stars. I sincerely hope you can fix that (my deepest apologies).

    I have been a Plant Paradox vegan for 6 months (lost 30 lbs…yay!), but struggle with delicious recipes. I am so glad that I found yours…finally…a wonderful and easy dish! I left out the protein, bell pepper, and corn, but doubled the onion and broccoli. Also, I added blanched, toasted almond slivers from Trader Joe’s, which added a bit of additional sweetness. I also added 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper.

    By the way, I had to fight off my husband for a bowl of this curry, as I want to take the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I had to promise him that I’ll make extra for him next time.

    Reply

    • Chocolate Covered Katie says

      Aw thank you so much for making it! 🙂

      Reply

  14. Heather says

    What kind of sweetener do you recommend?

    Reply

    • Jason Sanford says

      Maple syrup or sugar both work!

      Reply

  15. CJ Brocker says

    I love your site, your book and your recipes; this one is very good! Have you considered adding the name of your recipe and/or the name of your site to all your recipe photos (your photos that have this are so easy to find amongst my saved recipes in Pinterest). Thank you for sharing your recipes.

    Reply

    • Jason Sanford says

      Hi! Thank you so much for making the recipe :). Katie usually puts watermarks on the photos, at least with the most recent posts. Is that what you mean?
      Jason (media relations)

      Reply

  16. Laramee says

    This post sound very nice.

    Reply

  17. Keith Sabin says

    I’m late to this party, but glad I got here! I swapped peapods for the broccoli, and stirred in aji amarillo for mellow heat (rather than the easy but sharper choice of gochujang), and it’s MOUTHWATERING good. Plan to do the instant-pot version next time…

    Reply

Leave A Reply

Yellow Curry Thai - Easy Weeknight Recipe - Chocolate Covered Katie (2024)

FAQs

Can you add water to coconut milk curry? ›

When butter is melted, add onion and shallots and cook until tender and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Step 2Add garlic, ginger, and curry powder and cook until fragrant, 1 minute more. Add tomato paste and cook until darkened slightly, 1 to 2 minutes more. Step 3Add coconut milk and water and bring to a simmer.

Why is Thai yellow curry so good? ›

Because Thai yellow curry contains both coconut cream and coconut milk, it's much milder, richer, and creamier than other curries. It's usually made with chicken or beef, carrots, onions, and potatoes, but other starchy vegetables can be added or substituted as you prefer (some add red and green peppers or both!).

How to make coconut curry more flavorful? ›

Add extra chiles or more turmeric, ginger, cardamom, cayenne, or red pepper flakes. Vary how you serve it. You can serve this curry with basmati rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice, or even quinoa.

Where is coconut curry from? ›

Outside the Indian subcontinent, a curry is a dish from Southeast Asia which uses coconut milk or spice pastes and is commonly eaten over rice.

How do Thai restaurants make curry so creamy? ›

Often, Thai curries are made using coconut milk as the main liquid, which results in a creamy consistency. You can use as much or as little coconut milk as you wish based on your preference for texture, spice, and flavor.

Does Thai curry use coconut milk or coconut cream? ›

The majority of Thai curries are made with coconut milk as the main liquid, which produces creamier curries, but they're not necessarily “rich.” The amount of coconut milk can vary by quite a lot, depending on the texture one is looking for: massaman curry, for example, is quite rich because it uses coconut milk and is ...

Which Thai curry is healthiest? ›

People love green curry because of the gentle balance of heat, sweet, and acid from the chiles, lime, and fresh herbs. Green curry is great with chicken and shrimp because it offers a punch of seasoning to the protein. The long list of herbs also makes green curry one of the healthiest Thai cuisine dishes.

Do they eat yellow curry in Thailand? ›

There are a few varieties of what's considered “yellow curry” in Thai cuisine. They vary in spiciness and sauce richness, with some made with and others made without coconut cream.

Is red Thai curry hotter than yellow? ›

Although all three colors may be spicy-hot depending on the chef, normally green is the mildest and red the hottest with yellow falling somewhere in between.

What is the secret to good Thai curry? ›

The secret to making amazing Thai curries is to use plenty of aromatics, like onion, ginger and garlic. Choose full-fat coconut milk for its richness (you won't regret it!). Stirring in just a little bit of rice vinegar and sugar adds tons of complexity.

At what stage do you add coconut milk to a curry? ›

Once the spices and veg have cooked, add in the coconut milk and a couple cups of chicken stock. Turn the heat up so it comes to a boil and then lower to about medium heat and cook for 10-15 minutes. Just until it starts to thicken! I normally do 10 minutes, but if you like a really thick sauce, take it longer.

What vegetables go in curry? ›

The curry base is made with onions, tomatoes, ginger, garlic, red chilli powder and garam masala. I prefer to go with potatoes, carrots, peas, green beans, cauliflower, corn and bell peppers. Though you can use other veggies like baby corn, sweet potato and broccoli, the curry will have different flavors.

What is a fun fact about Thai curry? ›

An intriguing fact is that some of the prominent Thai curries are in fact influenced by other countries nearby. For example, the Massaman curry, which is considered as the relatively mild Thai curry dish in terms of spiciness, is rumored to be an alteration of a Persian dish.

What does gaeng mean in Thai? ›

Thai curry (Thai: แกง, romanized: kaeng, pronounced [kɛ̄ːŋ]) is a dish in Thai cuisine made from curry paste, coconut milk or water, meat, seafood, vegetables or fruit, and herbs.

What is the least spicy Thai curry? ›

In general, Thai yellow curry is the mildest, Thai red curry is medium-hot and Thai green curry is spicy, although it can sometimes vary depending on what region of Thailand you are in.

Can you add water to coconut milk? ›

Although coconut milk is high in fat and calories, the types of medium-chain saturated fats are now thought to be very healthy. Plus, if you really want a lighter coconut milk alternative you can always dilute it by using 2 parts coconut milk and one part water.

Is it OK to add water to curry? ›

Adding a little water can restore the balance. Yes, it “dilutes the flavour” but that may be desirable. Secondly, keeping the water content of your curry up to a consistent level (not too much, not too little) throughout the cooking process does ensure gentle cooking.

Do you use water in coconut milk? ›

Add coconut, 3 cups (720 ml) water, salt, and any additional add-ins (optional) to a high-speed blender. Top with lid and cover with a towel to ensure it doesn't splash. Blend for about 2 minutes or until the mixture seems well combined. Scoop out a small sample with a spoon to test flavor/sweetness.

Should I add water or milk to curry? ›

Coconut milk as a curry sauce base makes the dish creamy, sweet and give it a thicker consistency. The sweetness of the milk reduces the sharpness of spices and heat making the dish a little mild. Water on the other hand dilutes the dish and makes it a bit runny.

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