Thai Red Curry with Vegetables
This Thai red curry recipe is so easy to make at home! It's much tastier than takeout and healthier, too. This recipe is vegetarian, vegan and gluten free!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 5, 2024
You know dinner was good when you want to eat it for breakfast. Speaking of, it’s 10 am and I’m writing with a happy belly.
This Thai red curry made a fantastic meal last night and perhaps an even better breakfast this morning. It’s warm, comforting, and perfect for cool days. It’s a little rich, too, but so full of vegetables that it doesn’t feel too indulgent.
I’ve been meaning to try a red Thai curry based on my green curry for a while now, and I’m so glad I finally did. It’s the best curry I’ve ever had, restaurant versions included! Yeah, I said it.
Bonus? You should be able to find everything you need for this simple curry at a well-stocked grocery store.
Watch How to Make Thai Red Curry
Thai Red Curry Tips
- The secret to making amazing Thai curries is to use plenty of aromatics, like onion, ginger and garlic.
- Choose full-fat coconut milk for its richness (you won’t regret it!).
- Stirring in just a little bit of rice vinegar and sugar adds tons of complexity.
- Readily available store-bought Thai red curry paste adds characteristic Thai flavor and, bonus, the Thai Kitchen brand is vegetarian. You can make your own if you’re so inclined, though.
- Feel free to change up the vegetables, as long as you slice them so they’re all pretty small and about the same size. You could try broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, diced butternut or sweet potato (which will probably require a longer cooking time), sliced zucchini and/or yellow squash.
Please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments. I love to hear from you.
If you enjoy this hearty dinner recipe, be sure to check out my cookbook for more!
Thai Red Curry with Vegetables
This Thai red curry recipe is so easy to make at home! It’s much tastier than takeout and healthier, too. Feel free to change up the vegetables (you’ll need about 3 cups total) and skip the kale if you want a more traditional Thai curry. This recipe is vegetarian, vegan and gluten free for all to enjoy. Recipe yields 4 servings.
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups brown jasmine rice or long-grain brown rice, rinsed
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or olive oil
- 1 small white onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- Pinch of salt, more to taste
- 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger (about a 1-inch nub of ginger)
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin 2-inch long strips
- 1 yellow, orange or green bell pepper, sliced into thin 2-inch long strips
- 3 carrots, peeled and sliced on the diagonal into ¼-inch thick rounds (about 1 cup)
- 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste*
- 1 can (14 ounces) regular coconut milk**
- ½ cup water
- 1 ½ cups packed thinly sliced kale (tough ribs removed first), preferably the Tuscan/lacinato/dinosaur variety
- 1 ½ teaspoons coconut sugar or turbinado (raw) sugar or brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce***
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar or fresh lime juice
- Garnishes/sides: handful of chopped fresh basil or cilantro, optional red pepper flakes, optional sriracha or chili garlic sauce
Instructions
- To cook the rice, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the rinsed rice and continue boiling for 30 minutes, reducing heat as necessary to prevent overflow. Remove from heat, drain the rice and return the rice to pot. Cover and let the rice rest for 10 minutes or longer, until you’re ready to serve. Just before serving, season the rice to taste with salt and fluff it with a fork.
- To make the curry, warm a large skillet with deep sides over medium heat. Once it’s hot, add the oil. Add the onion and a sprinkle of salt and cook, stirring often, until the onion has softened and is turning translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds, while stirring continuously.
- Add the bell peppers and carrots. Cook until the bell peppers are fork-tender, 3 to 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add the curry paste and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes.
- Add the coconut milk, water, kale and sugar, and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the peppers, carrots and kale have softened to your liking, about 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the pot from the heat and season with tamari and rice vinegar. Add salt (I added ¼ teaspoon for optimal flavor), to taste. If the curry needs a little more punch, add ½ teaspoon more tamari, or for more acidity, add ½ teaspoon more rice vinegar. Divide rice and curry into bowls and garnish with chopped cilantro and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes, if you’d like. If you love spicy curries, serve with sriracha or chili garlic sauce on the side.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my Thai green curry recipe.
*Red Thai curry paste: Look for it in the Asian section of the grocery store. I like Thai Kitchen brand, which is vegetarian. Not all brands are (they can contain fish sauce and/or shrimp paste).
**Coconut milk: For rich and creamy curry, you need to use regular (not light/reduced fat) coconut milk that contains guar gum. My favorite is Native Forest Classic. The varieties without guar gum (which are becoming more widely available) aren’t nearly as creamy, even though their fat content is the same.
***Make it gluten free: Be sure to use gluten-free tamari instead of regular soy sauce.
If you want to add tofu: I’d suggest baking it first and adding it with the coconut milk in step 4. If you add raw tofu, it will soak up too much of the liquid, and baking it greatly improves the texture, anyway.
Update 8/10/2016: I tweaked this recipe a tiny bit to make it richer and more flavorful (decreased water from ¾ cup to ½ cup, and increased tamari to 1 tablespoon and vinegar to 2 teaspoons). I also updated the post with better photos!
If you love this recipe: Be sure to check out my other Thai-inspired recipes here! Don’t miss the Thai pineapple fried rice.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Delicious! Tastes like an authentic Thai curry, must be the best Thai curry I made at home, highly recommended!
I’m happy you think so, Paulina! I appreciate your review.
So tasty and fed a houseful made in advance up to adding coconut milk which I did add but took off heat, left for several hours before everyone was ready for dinner then just reheated flavours were brilliant loads of compliments – thank you x
Jacqui
I loved making this recipe! I had no chicken or other protein to add, but it was still a huge success with my husband who is not a veggie lover— My college aged daughter thought it was amazing too. I wish I would’ve had lime juice or rice vinegar. I had to use the white vinegar I had on Hand. It tasted good but I’m sure it’d be better as written!
Love this curry! Super easy and delicious, have made it several times!
This was such a warm and comforting dish on a chilly fall day! I added some cooked chickpeas for more protein and omitted the sugar. So yummy! Will be making again for sure.
That’s great to hear, Elizabeth. Thank you for taking the time to review!
Thank-you so much!! Recipe was wonderful. Can you do the same with green curry or yellow curry?
Hi Anne! If you are looking for a green curry, I suggest my green curry recipe.
Doubled the recipe and am so glad I did. My 18-month-old and 3-year-old both took several bites of the sauce over rice (without coercion) during cooking, and now I’m trying not to sample more of it as I wait for dinner guests to arrive. Simple, delicious, and just the thing to warm your insides on a cold fall day.
Hooray! I think that’s a big win. I’m glad it was a hit with the little ones, too. Thank you for your review, Rachel!
Have you tried converting this recipe for Instant Pot? It seems like it should work well.
Hi! I haven’t, sorry. I find this one comes together quickly the way it is and love the stovetop flavor.
Amazing amazing amazing recipe! Super tasty and even more easy to make! Thank you for such a great dinner recipe. The entire family loved it.
I’m glad it was a hit, Ru!
Loved this recipe. I use Mae Poy Thai red curry paste (amazon, far better than those in the grocery store) with sweet potatoes and peppers. Can add or leave out chicken and butternut squash. I use veggie dicer to keep pieces uniform, so they cook evenly and serve with jasmine rice. I prefer more sauce, so double the recipe broth or even triple depending on how many veggies I add. It freezes well. Great tips and notes. :)
I make this curry. I do empty veggies from pan and add some chicken,once chicken is cooked i add the coconut milk and water. Although the curry without chciken and just veggies is good by itself my husband is not satisfied unless it gas meat. (We tried tofu but it was a miss)
So even if you are not a vegetarian this curry recipe is the best,just add meat .
This was delicious – thank you for sharing. I used red onion, red and yellow bell peppers, yams instead of carrots (cut into small squares and microwaved till 1/2 way cooked) and a can of rinsed/drained bamboo shoots . I omitted kale and used bok choy instead. I also added a teaspoon of dried red chilis (hubby likes it HOT ;). Of course I used Butler Soy Curls (==>>obsessed! I actually prefer them to chicken) soaked/seasoned browned in sesame oil added just before serving. I Served with white jasmine rice. Used Blue Dragon Red Thai Curry Paste This recipe will be added to the Meatless Monday roster for sure! Thank you again. ~.~
The way you have presented this blog I liked it. Thank You for sharing such an amazing article. This article contains great facts which I liked.
I made this recipe a few days ago and I loved it! I would say it was more delicious than what I have had in a restaurant. This recipe is a keeper! Thank you so much for sharing such awesome recipes Kate.
During this time of confinment, I felt like I travelled through eating this delicious Thai dish.
I’m glad you loved it, Johanne! Thank you for your review.
Oh my, this was so delicious. Tasty, creamy, and satisfying. I included the baked tofu, which made it a complete meal. Will definitely be making this again!
Great! Thank you for sharing, Carol.
i made it with golden potatoes, tofu, and the veggies listed. i baked the potatoes and the tofu first. then added at step 4. turned out great.
This is in the weekly rotation now. I’m obsessed with it. My tweaks: I doubled the sauce bc my family likes a lot of sauce. I also added sweet potato and chickpeas for a little more protein. My husband 2 young boys all love it. Thanks Kate for an amazing recipe!
Thank you for sharing, Emily! I appreciate your review.
My partner and I enjoyed prepping all of the veggies and tofu; then adding the aromatic spices etc to the amazing colorful dish! Then we enjoyed a wonderful candlelight dinner of the Thai red curry with vegetables! Definitely a “keeper” recipe!
I love to hear that, Kathryn! Thank you for your review.
Curry was amazing. I used brown sugar and was perfect. Thanks
This recipe is amazing, and we end up making it every week or two. Thank you!
Just made this last night! We loved it!
Fabulous ! This Thai curry made my day!
Instant Hit!!! My family loved it! I added chickpeas and that was it!! Curry Perfection
That’s great! Thank you for sharing.
I love this recipe but tip for people who struggle with IBS- Do not buy coconut milk with guar gum otherwise it wrecks havoc on your stomach. The brand I use is great in this recipe and makes it super creamy without sacrificing. :)
Hi! Cooking rice for 30 minutes sounds definitely too much. As someone from India and having cooked rice for almost every day for my adult life, I can confidently say that only a few varieties (that are unavailable in most of the world) take that long – a 12 minute boil is almost always enough. I’d boil water, then add rice, bring it back to boil and cover. Leave for 10-12 minutes on low, turn off and leave covered.
Hi Sid, thank you for your feedback. I’m happy it takes you last time! I haven’t been able to get it just right without the method I described. Thank you for sharing!
You are not kidding–this is delicious! And, when we ate the leftovers for lunch the next day, it was as if my kids read your post in saying the dish was even more flavorful and delicious the next day! Thank you so much–my kids keep asking me to make this again it was so yummy!
You’re welcome! I’m happy they enjoy this one.
Where’s the chicken in this recipe?
Hi Lin, I’m a vegetarian and this is a vegetarian blog so there isn’t any chicken.
Made this a few times. It’s so good! I took out the sugar and used coconut aminos instead of soy sauce. Thanks!
I have made this recipe so many times. Is easy and so delicious
Excellent, flavorful dinner. I served this with the oven baked tofu over coconut jasmine rice. Delicious!
Made this for my wife’s Bday today. Very good recipe, a definite “will make again” recipe. I basically doubled the recipe and added one large sweet potato cut into bite sized chucks. I waited to add the red and yellow peppers (don’t care for green) until the sweet potato and carrots were just starting to get soft. This way they were al dente. I used a Dutch oven to make this on the stove top. I also added chicken stock instead of water and let it simmer between 1.5-2 hours on very low heat. I also added crispy tofu toward the end of the cooking time. Mmmm, can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow. Many thanks for this recipe that was enjoyed by all.
Finding recipes online can be a mixed bag, even when shopping around by looking at reviews, but this is a fantastic dish that didn’t disappoint. I didn’t change a thing about the recipe besides using the white rice I had on hand.
This curry was a delightfully warming meal for a cozy dinner with a friend. It’s been less than a week since I cooked it and I’m already planning on making it again tonight. I really like a very spicy curry, so this time I will experiment by adding in some cerranos and maybe red chilis, too.
I’m glad this one didn’t disappoint, Jesse! Thank you for your review.
This was a really good recipe! I added a little umami powder and some Tajin spice and the flavor was perfect. I also used spinach instead of kale. This recipe is so easy to customize and is delicious. I didn’t add any extra protein, but I think it would be great with baked tofu. Thank you! KB
This was really good. I added some cauliflower (since I had some on hand that needed to get used up) and tofu and cut back a bit on the amounts of the other veggies. The red curry sauce was mild but very tasty. Fed two of us with only a small lunch portion worth of leftovers.
I’m making this tonight but I’m wanting to add in cauliflower and broccoli… do you suggest roasting the cauliflower before ? Does it matter ? Thanks !
Hi! You could, or sauté it.
Deere-lish! Used veggies on hand – frozen cauli, broccoli, spinach.Yummy! Thank you.♡
Great combination, Jen! Thank you for sharing.
Very vibrant curry – potentially my favorite recipe out there! I like to mix up the vegetables each time I do it, I quite enjoy replacing the kale with bamboo shoots and water chestnuts for a slightly more exotic feel.
I was wondering how spicy the thai red curry sauce is, as I tend to only handle half spicyness that others can. I make the thai pineapple fried rice and vegetarian chili but just cut heat by half. But would I lose flavour by cutting red curry sauce? LOVE your recipes
Hi! You can cut it in half, check the sauce and then see if you would like to add more.
This is the best curry I have EVER had and ever made. So rich, so delicious, and so so easy to make. Meat eaters, you won’t miss the meat at all. Definitely a new vegetarian staple in my kitchen!
Thank you for sharing, Dani!
I just made this with green beans and sweet potato instead of the kale. I roasted the sweet potato in chunks before putting in at the end because I was afraid it might not cook equally to other veggies. I served it over rice noodles instead of rice….YUM! Family loved it.
Thank you for sharing this recipe!! It was absolutely delicious. I felt like we were eating at our local Thai House Restaurant. We did add additional vegetables (Mushrooms, broccoli, green beans, bamboo shoots) and some fresh basil. This will become a go to recipe.
Can I replace the rice vinegar for regular vinegar? This is a good recipe but I might not add any eater to it next time.
Hi, you can or use some lime.
The Thai curry turned out great! Love this recipe!
This looks delicious! I’m just about to make it for a very special dinner with friends…Has anybody added prawns? Do you think prawns would be a good one to add?
Anyone added shrimp here?
Delicious! My husband, adult son and I were wowed. Thanks so much for creating such a great curry dish. This is the second of your recipes I’ve tried. Can’t wait to try more.
Hi, would love to make this recipe but I’m allergic to coconut. What would be a good substitution to coconut milk?
Hi Sarah! You could try whole milk, but would vary the taste. Or another neutral milk.
This isn’t a Thai curry recipe, it’s how to mix a pre made Thai curry paste into a pan of vegetables. To actually make a Thai curry the key ingredients are galangal, lemongrass, chilli, shrimp paste and Thai basil, none of which are even mentioned here, which is pretty insulting.
Hi Trevor, I’m sorry this recipe frustrates you. If you read the full post, I highlight where you can make your own if you choose. I try to keep recipes as authentic as I can, while adding my own interpretation.
This is so yummy, thanks! I added more ginger and garlic, bc I love spice, as well as some red pepper flakes. I also tried using some of the other vegetables – sweet potato, broccoli, zucchini, mushrooms – you suggested. It’s almost as good as my local take-out, I will definitely make this again!
Have made this recipe a couple times. Love having it as a weeknight meal option that comes together pretty quickly once the chopping is done. I replace the kale with spinach and baby bok choy (bag of 2 from Trader Joe’s). Next time will add some tofu for serving as well.
Thank you for sharing, Gretchen! I appreciate your review.