Thai Red Curry Noodle Soup
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So much better than takeout! Packed with bites of tender chicken, rice noodles, cilantro, basil and lime juice!
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reasons to make thai red curry noodle soup
- Restaurant-quality made right at home for half the cost (and even tastier IMO)
- Fragrant, flavorful, cold weather comfort food, full of bold Thai flavors
- No-fuss one pot dinner which means less dishes, less clean up
- Great clean-out-the-fridge meal, adding in any lingering veggies that needs to be used up
- Quick and easy for busy weeknights but also fancy enough for company
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
- 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.
- Fish sauce is a hero. Fish sauce is a key ingredient here, balancing out the flavors, and adding saltiness and umami without overpowering it. A little bit goes a long way.
- Mix it up. Swap the red curry paste for green, add in more veggies (cabbage, zucchini, mushrooms or bok choy) or use your favorite noodles (vermicelli, udon or soba noodles).
- Divide and conquer. When storing leftovers, separate the noodles and broth. This will help the noodles retain its texture.
what to serve with thai red curry noodle soup
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Thai Red Curry Noodle Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Shrimp or tofu are both great options.
We personally love Mae Ploy (contains shrimp paste). Thai Kitchen is also great with mild heat, and more readily available at most grocery stores.
Fish sauce has a strong, pungent “fishy” smell but when cooked, it brings in savory, salty, umami goodness.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days, separating the rice noodles from the broth.
We do not recommend freezing this as coconut milk tends to separate when frozen.
Thai Red Curry Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 tablespoons red curry paste
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 6 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk
- 4 ounces rice noodles
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
Equipment
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste. Add chicken to the stockpot and cook until golden, about 2-3 minutes; set aside.
- Add garlic, bell pepper and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in red curry paste and ginger until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken broth and coconut milk, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Stir in chicken. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in rice noodles, fish sauce and brown sugar until noodles are tender, about 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat; stir in green onions, cilantro, basil and lime juice; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
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So very good, and easy too!
Thai basil would be even better!!
So delicious and easy to make!
I’ve made this before and it was really good, but tonight I realized I’m out of fish sauce. Do you have any recommendations?
Hoisin is a great substitute for fish sauce!
Wow!!! This was abso-freaking-lutely DELICIOUS!!! Best Thai dish we’ve made at home!!! Definitely going on the permanent rotation!
Do you think you could make this in a slow cooker over low?
Thanks!
This was so dang good! Flavor was absolutely delish even without the fish sauce (thought I had some) and I added red pepper flakes for spice. This is now going into the family meal rotation!
Absolutely delicious! Followed directions to a t and it was amazing!
A new favorite
My 10th time (at least) making this, and probably my 2nd or 3rd review. I don’t always follow the recipe to a ‘T’, just based off what I have on hand, but it’s always a winner!! Tonight I couldn’t find any red curry paste so I mixed Thai Kitchen Red sweet chili sauce with curry powder, and it was a great substitute. Also added zucchini and broccoli to this pot. It’s soooo delish as is, but I also customizable to your tastes!
Vraiment très bon!!! N’hésiter pas, vos papilles vont adorées 🙂 🙂
Excellent! Sometimes I add canned bean sprouts.
Excellent, delicious! This was a very authentic recipe. I went to a Thai restaurant before and had this. The flavor development is incredible. Try the recipe you won’t be disappointed.
I’ve made this 7 or 8 times since finding your recipe 2 months ago.
It’s amazing – light, warm, spicy, tangy,
fresh – delightful! I usually make it with the pan juices after I’ve cooked chicken breasts for my teen athlete’s protein binges, and either addshrimp or just leave out the chicken for myself. I add fresh bean sprouts, colored peppers, carrots, cabbage, onions, ramps, whatever I have in the house to round it out. Now that my herbs have come in its so easy to just snip here and there and have what I need for it. I used some lemon balm, purple basil and parsley today to go with the cilantro – well see how it tastes! Thank you, thank you for introducing me to this simple, delicious, addictive elixir! Be well.
I make this all the time. I’ve even substituted the chicken stock for beef stock cause it’s all I had and the result is the same, this recipe is amazing!
Absolutely Devine
Easy and delicious. 12/10 would recommend. Obsessed with this dish! I could have seconds, thirds, fourths…. It’s THAT damn delicious.
This recipe is soooo good. I added spinach. Yummy!
What brand of curry paste is used in this recipe?
Wowza – loved it! Moving it into the regular rotation!
Wow, this was really sensational. i’m not one to post changes i’ve made to a recipe, but i always cook with the intention of having leftovers so i didn’t want to add the noodles directly to the soup. sooooo since i doubled it i reduced the chicken broth to 8 cups (rather than 12). for full disclosure i added some cayenne pepper toward the end because i like spice, and perhaps my red curry was not on the strong side.
this really was sensational. looking forward to trying other recipes on this site.
New favorite!
Made it for the family, beautiful. Loved it!!
Made this for dinner tonight! It’s really delicious, but was hoping for more spicy heat! We’re a spicy ️ food family
It’s ok though we all still enjoyed it a lot! Will just add some thai chili’s next time for added spice…