Easy Thai Shrimp Soup
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
Skip the take-out and try making this at home – it’s unbelievably easy and 10000x tastier and healthier!
Featured Comment
reasons to make easy thai shrimp soup
- Takeout favorite
- Budget-friendly
- Uses easy-to-find ingredients
- Cold weather comfort food
- Leftovers taste even better
- Super flexible recipe (and can be made vegetarian friendly)
what is red curry paste and where can i find it
Commonly used in Thai dishes, red curry paste is made from a blend of red chili pepper, garlic, lemongrass, Thai ginger and various spices.
Red curry paste is typically used for stir-fry, soups or mixed with coconut milk for curry. It is readily available in most grocery store chains, particularly the Thai Kitchen brand, and online, with some brands containing shellfish (shrimp paste).
tips and tricks for success
- Know your shrimp size. Shrimp size is calculated on number of shrimp per pound. The smaller the number, the larger your shrimp. There are about 40-50 medium shrimp per pound.
- Buy frozen shrimp. For superior quality and freshness, using frozen shrimp is ideal (but avoid the bags with freezer burn), opting for a quick thaw under cold running water.
- Use your favorite protein. This recipe will work well with chicken thighs, chicken breasts, shrimp or tofu.
- Use full fat coconut milk. Although lite coconut milk can certainly be used, full fat coconut milk will yield a much more rich and creamy broth.
- Mix it up. Swap the red curry paste for green, add in more veggies (cabbage, zucchini, mushrooms or bok choy) or use rice noodles in place of rice.
- Stir in more stock with leftovers. When reheating leftovers, stir in more stock as needed as the rice will continue to soak up the broth.
what to serve with thai shrimp soup
Easy Thai Shrimp Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
You can thaw frozen shrimp overnight, transferring it from the freezer to the fridge the day before. For a quick thaw, you can run them under cold water until completely thawed, about 5-10 minutes. Pat them dry as thoroughly as possible to remove any excess moisture.
Yes! Chicken is a great swap for the shrimp, and you can sub chicken stock for the vegetable stock as well.
We personally love Mae Ploy (contains shrimp paste). Thai Kitchen is also great with mild heat, and more readily available at most grocery stores.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days.
We do not recommend freezing this as coconut milk tends to separate when frozen.
Easy Thai Shrimp Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Equipment
Instructions
- In a large saucepan of 1 1 /2 cups water, cook rice according to package instructions; set aside.
- Season shrimp with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Melt butter in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add shrimp, and cook, stirring occasionally, until pink, about 2-3 minutes; set aside.
- Add onion and bell pepper to the Dutch oven. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in red curry paste, garlic and ginger until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in coconut milk and vegetable stock; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 8-10 minutes.
- Stir in rice, shrimp, lime juice and cilantro.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
I don’t usually leave a review on recipes because usually I just want to sit and enjoy the meal so I tend to forget. I hadto take minute to say that just as is, this is damn delicious. I will do some add ons next time as others have suggested but just as written it certainly doesn’t disappoint.
Does anyone have the nutrition information for this recipe? I’ve made it before and loved it, but I’m diabetic now and need the nutrition information.
MyFitnessPal will let you “build a recipe” and then you can log it as serving. There’s also a really good chance that someone has already created the recipe too. They’ve recently put a bunch of their better functions behind a pay wall but if your need to track all aspects of your diet is important enough it may be worth it? Hope this helps!
Easy to prepare. DELICIOUS!! Made it for the first time 2 weeks ago. Couldn’t wait have it again. Will be having it tonight
Excellent recipe! Comes together quickly and is absolutely delicious. I’ve made it as it is written and also with chicken and chicken stock.
This is my second time making this soup and it tastes better than I remember. So easy!! The freshness of the broth, vegetables, lime juice along with fresh parsley instead of cilantro, has made this a keeper to make every over and over during those cooler months!!
Wow – great recipe. Shared this with friends – they thought I’d brought it from a restaurant.
Very easy to make. I used a more expensive red curry paste – worth it.
I used a mixture of fish and prawns.
Super easy, affordable ingredients, delicious flavor. Broth is spicy and buttery!
OMG best soup ever and fast!! I added yellow and red bell pepper, a tad more salt and 1 tsp of onion powder it was out of this world. Definitely making this a winter staple. Please try it.❤️
I swapped out the red curry paste for yellow and the yellow bellpepper for a green just because it’s what I had on hand. But WOW! Sooooo yummy, tastes like restaurant quality soup!
Yum! The whole family loved it
Delicious and easy to make!
I’ve made this several times now. I use a 13oz can of lite coconut milk. I also add another tablespoon of curry and a cup more rice. I like it like a Thai gumbo. It’s excellent. Thanks
Amazing! I substituted rice for rice vermicelli (pre-soaked in water)…
This will be my go-to recipe now!
This was so easy to make and absolutely restaurant calibre! I added tofu, broccoli, green beans and a few carrots -also a couple chopped thai chilis. Topped with chopped green onion and bean sprouts.It was hot and spicy and absolutely delicious. thanks for this recipe!!
Very easy to follow recipe and the food was amazing!
Good soup, and very flexible with changes. Have made many times as is, and have added things to it based on what is in my fridge. I will add whatever veggies are in my fridge that need to be used up, they have all tasted fine. I eat it without the rice, hubby likes it with the rice. I add a splash of fish sauce, I’ve added peanut butter before, hard boiled eggs too. Its a flexible start, and is accommodating. I come back to this recipe often!
Love this soup. I
Put a tbl of fish sauce, and a extra tbl spoon of curry paste. Added a good pinch of fresh chopped Basil
I added sriracha, about a tablespoon, added a chicken bouillon cube, one more teaspoon of red curry paste. It turned out fabulous. If you use the added ingredients, use small amounts to your individual taste. Believe after low heat simmer, it got nice and thick. Loved this recipe
The soup was delicious. I used Green curry paste, because I couldn’t find red at the store.
Easy and delicious. Made the recipe as written and loved it. This goes into our regular soup rotation. Thank you!!