Easy Thai Shrimp Soup
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Skip the take-out and try making this at home – it’s unbelievably easy and 10000x tastier and healthier!
I am such a sucker for Thai take-out, particularly for red curry and coconut soup. But ordering take-out has been getting a bit costly so this homemade coconut curry soup comes in very handy, especially during the cold, winter months. And the leftovers taste a million times better too.
Best of all, it’s so easy to make and it doesn’t require ingredients that are hard to find. And if you’re not a fan of shrimp, you can easily swap that out for chicken, pork or even tofu for a vegetarian option.
Either way, you’ll be sure to skip your usual Thai take-out and indulge in this budget-friendly version instead.
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.
I personally love Mae Ploy (contains shrimp paste). Thai Kitchen is also great, and more readily available at most grocery stores.
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 (12-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
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.
Did you make this recipe?
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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!!
Delicious recipe, have made it a few times now! I use frozen cauliflower rice cooked in the microwave, to make it healthier and slightly easier. I do add a little fish sauce, extra coconut cream, and extra veggies like mushrooms, zucchini, a little tomato, green onions, and I double the recipe. I save shrimp shells in the freezer to make stock, and sometimes make my own chicken bone broth as well. I also like to add chicken to make it more meaty without using as many shrimp. The flavor is amazing, and like any great soup, this tastes even better the next day!
LOVE THIS – this recipe is so easy and absolutely fantastic. Just perfect – THANK YOU – this is the first recipe I have tried from this website and plan to make my way thru a lot of them.