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!
Featured Comment
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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Yesterday I made this soup and my family loved it!
Very easy recipe and the product was delicious and authentic. Loved it. Thought it was better than anything I would get at the best restaurants as far as flavor is concerned. Would like to try with shrimp :))
Just made this I used shrimp instead of chicken and added shredded carrots and broccoli with a little chili oil, this will definitely be on the menu from now on!
How did the preparation change using shrimp instead of chicken?
The recipe is one can of coconut milk short. Amazed at the comments considering my fiance and I noticed the miss right away. Add the extra can, and it’s a fantastic recipe.
Fantastic recipe! Very easy to make and all of the ingredients were easy to find! I added a little Mongolian fire oil on top to add a little space. Great family meal – even my children ate this!
It’s winter here and cold grey evenings call for some comfort food and boy did this deliver on so many levels!! So full of flavor and so easy to prepare. Once again you’ve made me look like an absolute pro in the kitchen. Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe.
This soup is a knockout. It’s so ridiculously easy to make, how can it possibly taste so good with so little effort? I also leave out the cilantro (or coriander as we call it in the UK) as I can’t stand the stuff. My previous attempts at cooking Thai food at home were always a bit disappointing, but this one is a sure-fire winner. I don’t find that the noodles go soggy by the way, even when the soup is eaten a day or two later. It also freezes brilliantly. Thank you!!
*WoW* This was absolutely delicious. Super easy to make. My only omission was the cilantro, don’t like it much. I cooked the noodles seperately after reading reviews because I didn’t want the noodle to soak up all that yummy broth. Very good recipe. This will definitely go into the rotation. Thanks
Hi, I would like to make this recipe tonight, could I just double check, should raw chicken be added to the soup? Thanks so much!!
Veronika, the chicken is cooked in step #1 until golden and set aside, and is then returned to the pot in step #5.
1. 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.
I have not made this yet however plan to over the weekend. I am making it for myself only and plan to eat it for lunch for a couple days this week. I am worried the rice noodles will get soggy and not keep if I make them as the recipe states.
What would be a good alternative? Cooking the rice noodles separately and just adding them as I eat? Do you have any recommendations for this?
Yes, cooking the rice noodles separately may be best to avoid any type of sogginess.
Sooooooo yummy and easy!!
Super good and easy. I used 1 tablespoon of the chile paste to make it kind friendly!!! Loved it!!!
Wonderful soup! It’s going in my bi-weekly (or weekly) rotation, yum!
I forgot the stars hahaha
Very delicious ! My husband and I made it three or four times and we loved it ! First time, we tried it with tofu and shrimp and it was really great ! … but I think our favorite version is still with chicken : ) Thank you so much for the recipe and a special hello from Quebec city !
This soup was delicious and would be heavenly on a cold fall/winter’s night. Here in Toronto, it has been a rainy, cold Spring and I did not want to bbq tonight so this popped in mind and it was delicious. One of my sons, who does not really do soup, ate the whole bowl. I had three :)) My husband loved it too. I would more aptly do it in the winter months next time. So good. A departure from my regular chicken noodle. The fish sauce and lime a must, people! Next time I might boil the noodles separately and just add the exact quantity to each bowl as there were quite a bit of noodles.
Looks fantastic. I’ve tried to make ThaiCurry several times and I’m never able to get the flavor as robust and rich as it is in the restaurants. Can you recommend a good brand of curry paste. (Used Thai kitchen)
I love Thai Kitchen but if you can get to an Asian market, Mae Ploy is also really great.
Haven’t made it but looks good! 4 stars
This is so, so good. I’ve made it four times already!
This looks awesome. Could I make it with shrimp instead of chicken? Anyone made that sub?
Absolutely!