Ten years ago, my friend Ann made this soup for our family when we moved into our house. This has become one of my favorite soups and I like to prepare when I’m in a jam and need dinner quickly! It is quite easy, tasty, and perfect for a cold winters night. The blend of coconut milk and red curry paste is the perfect combination for a Thai style soup without any fuss. I will warn you though, it does have a nice kick to it. It will warm your bellies and leave you feeling satisfied. If you don’t like spicy food, just reduce the amount of curry paste to your liking.
I typically prepare this soup whenever I have leftover chicken and rice stored in my freezer. What I love about this recipe is that it doesn’t require exact amounts of anything. It’s a little bit of this.. a little bit of that. Before you know it, you have an awesome soup your friends and family will love! Enjoy!
(PS: If you make this soup for your friends who just had babies, I promise you.. You will be a Rock Star because all they’ve been eating since they’ve been home with a new baby is 10 different types of lasagnas and red sauce pasta dishes.)
Note: The only Asian ingredients you need is red curry paste and coconut milk. Fish sauce is optional. Not having fish sauce is no problem. I’ve posted pictures of the ingredients I used below because someone emailed me asking for the brands of the Asian ingredients I use. For the coconut milk and fish sauce I have no particular brand I am loyal to. I just happened to buy Chaokoh coconut milk and Squid brand fish sauce because they were on sale. However, I do like the Mae Ploy brand curry pastes. These ingredients can be found in most Asian grocery stores or in the Asian aisle of your neighborhood super market. You can also purchase them online – just do a Google search.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped - except for a few matchsticks for garnish
- ½ onion, chopped finely
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped finely - except for a few thinly sliced pieces for garnish
- 1 cup cooked chicken meat, chopped
- 1 cup cooked rice
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste (if you like it less spicy, just use 1 tablespoon)
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 21 oz chicken broth (roughly 1.5 cans of Swansons brand)
- 13.5 oz can Asian coconut milk or cream (unsweetened)
- Optional: few sprigs of cilantro
- Note: Reserve some of the coconut milk, carrots, and red bell pepper (and cilantro) for optional garnish.
- In a medium sauce pan, heat the olive oil on medium heat and cook the carrots, onions, and red bell pepper for approximately 5 minutes.
- Add the chicken, rice, brown sugar, curry paste, and fish sauce stirring and sauteing everything until curry paste is completely incorporated (approx. 2-3 minutes).
- Pour chicken broth and coconut milk into the pan and give it a good stir for a half minute. Reduce heat to medium and allow the soup to cook for 15-20 minutes.
- Serve with a spoonful of coconut milk added on top with a few matchstick carrots and a slice of red bell pepper for garnish. Enjoy!
Hi William, did you like it?
My friend made curry soup
Since I love my food spicy, I might add some more spiciness with this dish. I would really love this soup. Red curry and coconut are just so perfect together. The flavors are bursting leaving my stomach satisfied!
The curry soup looks so lovely. I love how your pictures capture the color of the dish. I can’t wait to try it out, it looks so mouth watering.