Tested Thai Red Curry in an Hour

Thai Red Curry Soup is a vegetarian (dairy-free & gluten-free too!) dish that has a deep heat that warms you up (without setting your brain on fire), soothing hints of coconut, and meaty bits of shiitake mushrooms. This soup is bursting with amazing Asian flavors. It’s easy to make and on the table in about an hour.

Red Thai Curry Ingredients

That way you’ve got something warm and tasty to dip into all weekend long.  Plus, it just gets better and better over the weekend.  Another good aspect of this dish is that it’s both dairy-free and gluten-free.

How to Make Thai Red Curry Soup

Although I am not an affiliate with this company, I use and recommend Thai Kitchen products.  I like their coconut milk, curries, and fish sauce.  If you don’t have access to an Asian grocery store, most run-of-the-mill stores carry this brand.

Ingredients

• 1 stick unsalted butter (substitute 1/4 cup olive oil to make 100% dairy-free)
• 4 cups onions, diced
• 1 cup finely chopped fresh lemongrass, white part only
• 2 pounds shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 4 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
• 2 tablespoons curry powder
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 3 tablespoons mirin
• 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 8 (14 oz) cans full-fat coconut milk, unsweetened
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 – 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (add 3 kaffir lime leaves if available)
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro (garnish)
• 1 cup red bell pepper, julienned (garnish)
• 1/2 cup green onions (garnish)

Instructions

This soup has a relatively short cooking time (20 minutes) but you can simmer it longer for deeper flavors.

1. In a large soup pot, over medium heat cook 4 cups diced onion and 8 oz. chopped lemongrass* with 4 tablespoons butter until soft and translucent.
2. Add another 4 tablespoons of butter and 2 pounds of sliced shiitake mushrooms.  Cook until mushrooms release their liquid about 10 minutes.
3. Stir in 4 tablespoons red curry paste, 2 tablespoons curry powder, and 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes and cook over medium heat for 3 minutes.
4. Pour 3 tablespoons fish sauce and 3 tablespoons Mirin over vegetables, and deglaze the bottom of the pan.
5. Stir in the brown sugar and add 8 (12 oz) cans of full-fat unsweetened coconut milk, add to the soup pot, stir well and simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Sprinkle in 2 tablespoons salt and stir well.
7. Taste the soup and add more curry powder, salt, or pepper flakes to suit your taste.
8. Finish the pot with fresh lime juice and lime leaves (if available).
9. Ladle over jasmine rice and garnish each serving with chopped cilantro, julienned red bell pepper, and sliced green onion.

A Note about Fish Sauce…

If you’ve never used fish sauce, don’t worry it’s pretty easy to find.  What you need to know about the fish sauce is this: a little goes a long way on its own and it smells horrible… I mean it.  Don’t smell it, but it really adds amazing flavor!

Hard-to-Find Items

Depending on where you live, these key ingredients may or may not be challenging to find.  Mirin, for instance, is an Asian slightly sweet tangy rice wine that can be found near where you would find soy sauce, in an international section, or near the vinegar.

If you live in my neck of the woods, rural central Illinois, head to a larger city (Indy, Champaign, or St. Louis) to find it on a shelf, or … Amazon is only a click away!

*Cooking with Lemongrass

When cooking with fresh lemongrass, use the white part near the root.  Discard the green leaf part.  Pound the whites with a mallet or frying pan and chop them into small pieces.

After you cook it with the onions, taste them.  If they’re not soft and they’re like eating wood chips, DON’T PANIC!   After adding the coconut milk, simmer the soup for at least an hour, strain the soup, then add the mushrooms.

If you use dried lemongrass from the get-go, tie it into a cheesecloth “purse” with kitchen twine.  You’ll get all the flavor this way without having to strain the soup.

If you enjoy Asian flavors (Thai in particular), I would highly recommend finding a spot in your yard, garden, or patio and plant it.  It’s super easy to grow and it’s best to cook with fresh tender lemongrass.  You can find little starters at most garden centers where fresh herbs are sold.

Thai Red Curry Soup Variations

If you’ve been hanging out with me here at Lakeside Table for any length of time, you know my absolute favorite recipes of all time are ones that can be eaten several different ways like Pork Chili Verde. 

Red Thai Curry Soup is just like that one!  Here are some ways that you can cook this dish once and have several different meals ready to go.

1. Lower Fat Thai Red Curry Soup – Substitute 72 ounces (6 cans) of coconut milk for vegetable or chicken broth.
2. Red Curry Chicken and Rice – Cooked chicken thighs or chicken breasts, chopped. Add 1/2 cup of chicken to 1 cup of soup and pour over a generous helping of basmati or jasmine rice.
3. Add-ins – not only is chicken a tasty addition but so are scallops, shrimp, any firm white fish like cod or halibut, pork, and beef.
4. Veggie add-ins – soften diced carrots with the onions or simmer peas and broccoli for the last 1/2 hour before serving.
5. Noodle bowl – serve over Thai rice noodles
6. Other toppings – Bean sprouts, toasted shaved garlic, ginger (grated)
7. Turn up the flame! – add even more heat by adding chili peppers of your choice
8. Substitute the red curry paste for green curry paste

Does Red Curry Soup Freeze Well?

Yes!  In the refrigerator, it will keep for 5-6 days.  Or you can freeze it in Tupperware, a freezer bag, or vacuum seal it and it will keep for up to 3-4 months. 

Make sure it is room temperature or cool before freezing.  Putting hot items in the freezer can lower your freezer’s temperature into a danger zone that will spoil all of its contents.

Always label everything that goes in the freezer.

What to Serve with Red Curry Soup

Normally I might offer up some ideas for side dishes, but this is really a meal all on its own.  But if you decide to serve it with sides try it with Turmeric Honey Glazed Carrots and maybe some buttered peas. 

Since Red Curry can be spicy, the sweetness of the carrots and peas will balance out the meal nicely.  The same goes for what to drink with it too:  a sweetened tea, lemonade, or a crisp white wine like a Trefethen dry riesling.

Inspired by…

This is one of my family’s favorite Thai food recipes that was given to me by Chef Niall owner and head chef of the Effingham, IL Firefly Grill. If you’re even in the neighborhood stop in! We’d love to see you!

Chef Niall and Kristie travel extensively to seek out authentic international flavors and bring them back to us. The Firefly Grill’s menus reflect their journeys so we get to experience these parts of those cultures too. Thank you so much, Niall, for sharing this with us!