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. This is typically used for stir-fry, soups or mixed with coconut milk for curry. Red curry paste 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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Wow this was so delicious and will definitely make it again (maybe tomorrow ) I can now stop spending money on Laksa from my local and just make this instead!! Thank you for the brilliant recipe
Made this for our SOUPerbowl party, 1 pot with chicken the other with shrimp, and both were a HUGE HIT! So much flavor!
Delicious! Added mushrooms and snow peas but otherwise followed the recipe. My husband who doesn’t like soup loved it, we both had two bowls and have plenty leftover for tomorrow.
This is now a staple recipe for our family. So easy to make and absolutely delicious! Thanks for knocking the flavors out of the park.
A staple in my household, too! So good.
This is delicious! I make it with 1/2 lb chicken and 1 lb shrimp. Extra lime juice is my preference, too! Use good pho rice noodles, they don’t need to cook very long.
Making this tonight and thinking of adding lemongrass!! Very excited! Will update comment with thoughts of the finished yumminess!
This was amazing! Hands down my favorite soup of all time! Did it exactly as the recipe called. My husband and I added a touch of sriracha in our bowls to give it a little more heat. So damn delicious.
I’m guilty of not cooking enough! I’m trying to find my groove and this recipe makes it easy, love this meal ️☝️
I have made this SEVERAL times and it’s aahhhmazing every time!
I don’t usually review but I had to for this one. I added shrimp as well as chicken, and a couple tbsp of Better than bouillon chicken and it is AMAZING. So good. Will be making many times.
The BEST!!!!! This was so flavorful and delish!!! We have made this recipe multiple times now and love it!
Unbelievably delicious. Made it exactly like the recipe. Would not change a thing.
We LOVE this soup! All I did differently is add some sugar snap peas along with the green onions, etc. Delicious and easy!
I think my husband would love it if I made this for him.
Great soup; I used only 1 T of red curry paste and some baby Bella mushrooms. I will make it again, and I wlll break up rice noodles more. I like all Damn delicious recipes.
Hubby said it’s the best soup I’ve ever made (and we’ve been married 22 years!) I added carrots, extra red curry paste, lime, and ginger. Wow! Thanks for the great recipe!
Really good!!
The soup tastes great, smells wonderful, and looks inviting. Love this recipe. This is the second time I’ve made it. The only change we made was using a bit fewer noodles — only to reduce the carbs. The recipe is a new fave.
Very flavorful soup! I’m vegan so I omitted the chicken & added extra veggies. I will definitely be making this soup again!
This looks divine! Is there anything I can use in place of the fish sauce? Or just leave it out? One tablespoon shouldn’t make or break the recipe