A 30-minute Thai Green Curry you can make with any type of protein you like: chicken, shrimp, or make it vegetarian with chickpeas. An incredibly flavorful dish that takes as if it took forever to prepare but is actually super quick and easy.
The ingredients
The easiest and fastest way to make Thai curry is by using ready-made curry pastes. They come mainly in three colors: yellow (mild), red (hotter), and green (hottest).
One of my favorite brands is Thai Kitchen’s green curry because it contains nothing but clean ingredients. (Not sponsored). I use it for my famous Thai Curry Soup as well as for the super popular Thai Chicken Cauliflower Curry.
Other than that you only need scallions, garlic, ginger, and coconut milk for the curry sauce and from there the sky is the limit.
Use any protein of your choice. If it’s raw animal protein make sure to pan fry or bake or roast first of course. My favorite protein for Thai Green Curry is:
- chicken thighs
- shrimps
- chickpeas
Many others can work fine, too though. Any type of white fish or even salmon. Stripes of beef, though I find they are rather strong in flavor and don’t go as well with the strong flavored sauce. You be the judge though :)
In terms of vegetables I like using what I call “soft veggies”. The ones that cook fast:
- zucchini
- snow peas
- sugar snap peas
- bell pepper
- asparagus
- green beans
You can also add what I call “hard veggies” bu you’ll have to account for the a little extended cooking time. 3-4 minutes submerged in simmering thai green curry broth won’t be enough to soften them up. You’ll have to cook them for more like 8-10 minutes.
- carrots
- celery
- cauliflower
- broccoli
Thai Green Curry 3 Ways
The simple change of protein makes the green curry taste completely different. It’s amazing. I prepare all three of them the same way but it feels like they are completely different meals.
The best part is that the protein is cooked separatly first so you can easily make the whole curry and then add the cooked protein to the plate directly and that way every family member can have their favorite without any extra effort.
Any and all of these are fantastic for Meal Prep as well. It lasts perfectly fine with whichever protein for up to 4 days in the fridge and also freezes well.
Quick and Easy Thai Green Curry
Ingredients
- 1 lbs skinless boneless chicken thighs - or raw shrimp or cooked chickpeas or a combination
- 1 tsp avocado oil
- 2 scallions
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 Tbsp grated ginger
- 3 Tbsp Thai green curry paste
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 zucchini
- 1 cup snow peas
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
- sea salt
- pepper
- 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
- 1 red chili
Instructions
- Preheat a large pan over medium heat and once hot add a drizzle of oil and pan-fry the raw protein of your choice (chicken, shrimp). Or omit this step when using cooked chickpeas.
- Cut the dark green part of the scallions off and set aside for later and then thinly slice the white and light green part. Also finely chop the garlic and ginger.
- Once the protein is cooked through, remove from the pan, and set aside. Reduce the heat to low and then add the sliced onion, and chopped garlic, and ginger to the pan juices and also add the green curry paste. Then sauté for about 1 minute or until fragrant.
- Add the coconut milk to the pan and stir to combine. Bring to a boil and let simmer on low for approximately 4-5 minutes stirring occasionally.
- In the meantime, cut the zucchini in fine stripes, then add it to the pan together with the snow peas, submerge in the curry sauce and let simmer for 3-4 minutes or until desired consistency.
- Now it's time to add the cooked protein (chicken or shrimp) back into the pan or the cooked chickpeas together with the frozen peas and stir to combine and reheat. Season with sea salt and pepper at this point if desired.
- Serve over rice and then sprinkle with fresh cilantro leaves, a handful of sliced dark green scallion parts, chopped red chili, and fresh lime juice.
Seco De Carne (Cilantro Beef Stew)
Chicken Spaghetti Squash
Avocado Chicken Salad
Kanika says
Can tofu be used as a protein replacement for vegetarians?
Lorena Grater says
The one with chickpeas is vegetarian :) If you prefer tofu of course, go ahead.
Sue says
Can you serve with brown jasmine rice?
Lorena says
Absolutely!! Great idea :)