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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Did you make this recipe?
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LOVE this recipe! I’ve made it 3 times in the last month, and about to make it for the 4th time tonight! Seriously amazing!!
We love it!
delicious !
Made this and it is ADDICTING!!! I ADORE it just as it is, but I thing I will give it a try with shrimp next time! Thank you SO MUCH for a keeper recipe that will be made at LEAST bi-monthly!!
So, So Good!!
I just made this and it was indeed damn delicious! Going to make it a staple.
My entire family loved this. They said I can make it again anytime.
So i will be making this tonight for dinner and was wondering if i should add an extra can of coconut milk? And i see it calls for only half of the 8oz bag of rice noodles….is that correct or use the whole 8oz? Can’t wait to try it,Thanks
Yes, the recipe is correct as written but you can add more rice noodles and/or coconut milk if you prefer.
Perfect!
Thank you, Sarah!
This soup was so incredibly delicious. All of the flavors between the curry, herbs, limes added so much depth. I think my curry paste was a little too spicy, so I cut it with sour cream. Will definitely be making again!
Thank You!!! We’ve made this 3 times now and even entered in a friendly soup competition and won! If I’m out of noodles, it works wonderfully with jasmine rice.
Wow! Congratulations!
This turned out great!!! Spinach, asparagus, mushrooms were all great additions too. My one year old couldn’t get enough!
Oh sorry to hear that. If you reserve one (tea)cup of this recipe then your child would have enough. But probably should hold the pepper, onion, curry paste, cilantro, garlic, ginger, basil, coconut milk, and fish sauce for the little one.
Love it! I like a little more spice and zing so I doubled the fresh ginger and added a little chili paste, also lots of lime, yum! I also added carrots and will add some mushrooms next time I think they’d be great in this soup. This recipe is a keeper, prepping the ingredients chopping and zesting takes the most time but I sure do love a cutting board full of beautiful fresh herbs and veggies, so it’s worth it!
Thank you so much for sharing!
What can I substitute for fish sauce?
Elizabeth, you can substitute soy sauce or omit.
Easy and amazingly delicious! My husband is a pescetarian so
We substituted to vegetable broth and shrimps/squid instead.
Will make it a million more times .. Awesome❤️
Oh I’m sure that was just as tasty!
Made this today. Yum! I added a whole package of noodles which absorbed most of the liquid, so I added more chicken broth and red curry paste. Left over the flavor is on point. So good. Even two of my little boys liked it. Don’t skip the basil and cilantro at the end. It really adds to the flavor. Will be keeping this recipe and making again. Thank you for sharing and including the nutrition info!
Thank you Michelle!
So so so good!!! I didn’t have fish sauce so I opted to use a substitute of 1 tablespoon soy sauce with anchovy paste. Tasted wonderful!!! Thanks for sharing such a great recipe!
Great improvising!
REALLY great improving!
Delicious. Think I went overboard on the grated ginger and red curry paste but since hubby loves spicy it was a hit. Will make again but will be careful with the ginger. Maybe add some cooked prawns too.
Super easy to throw together and #damndelicious too! Thanks!
I made this recipe for the first time yesterday and OMG, it was fantastic. Thank you so much. We used to enjoy Thai food when we lived in a more populated location. Thai red curry soup was my favorite. Now we are living in the boonies and taking care of my 99-year-old mother. My challenge is to cook food that we all enjoy. My Mom eats very little but she does enjoy her vegetables. I used all the ingredients in your recipe, and added a few of my own, namely, broccoli, muchrooms, carrots, and sugar snap peas. It was simply delightful. I hadn’t used rice noodles before, but they were perfect. We still have plenty of soup to enjoy for the next couple of days. This receipe is definitely one that I will make on a regular basis.
I loved this recipe! So flavorful and delicious!! Added chili garlic sauce for extra heat and also used both chicken and shrimp! Looking forward to making again with a thin noodle!
Thanks for sharing!
I made this a few weeks ago and it was superb! I am planning on making it again tonight for dinner. It’s so quick and easy and full of flavor. I did add bean sprouts at the end because I love the crunch with the soup 🙂
Wonderful! Next time I will serve with Jasmine Rice on the side and omit rice noodles….or break up noodles so it is easier to eat.