THAI RED CURRY CHICKEN AND VEGETABLES

THAI RED CURRY CHICKEN AND VEGETABLES

You guys HAVE to make this Thai Red Curry Chicken Recipe! I don’t beg often, so I hope you know I never cry wolf. If you are a lover of Thai Food, you will be a LOVER of this warm, comforting, multi-dimensional Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables! Its a one pot wonder worthy of any weeknight or weekend and you should be able to find all the ingredients at your local grocery store!

To further the complexity of flavors, we also add Thai sweet chili sauce, and the classic cast of Thai food characters: soy sauce, fish sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, dried basil and a bay leaf. Its a somewhat long list of ingredients, but most of them you are just dumping into the sauce. You might notice we are not using Kaffir lime leaves which are responsible for the distinctive earthy lime-lemon flavor in many traditional Thai Red Curry recipes, but this exotic ingredient can be very difficult to find, and I want you to be able to make this Thai Red Curry Chicken recipe AT ALL TIMES. While there is no direct substitute for Kaffir lime leaves, it doesn’t mean other ingredients can’t be used to produce otherworldly flavors. This Thai Red Curry Chicken achieves a wonderfully fresh citrus zing by playing up the fresh lime juice, bright lime zest and simmering the sauce with a bay leaf. Done.

This 30 MINUTE Thai Red Curry Chicken with Vegetables is wonderfully coconut creamy, bursting with layers of flavor, incredibly easy and all made in one pot! Definitely a new favorite at our house and better than any restaurant!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil
• 1 pound chicken breasts sliced into 1/4” slices then 2” pieces**
• 1/2 large onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons red curry paste
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced then chopped into 2” pieces
• 1 orange bell pepper thinly sliced then chopped into 2” pieces
• 1 small zucchini, sliced
• 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 13.5 oz. can quality coconut milk (I like Chaokoh)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon Asian/Thai Sweet Chili Sauce (like Mae Ploy)
• 2 tablespoons less sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• sriracha to taste (optional)

Garnish

• lime zest to taste
• fresh basil
• fresh cilantro
• fresh lime juice

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat oil over medium high heat in large nonstick skillet. Add chicken, onion and red curry paste and cook just until chicken is no longer pink. Add bell peppers, zucchini, ginger and garlic and saute 1 minute.
2. Add half of the coconut milk. Mix remaining coconut milk with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and add to skillet along with all remaining ingredients (expect Garnishes).
3. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens and the vegetables reach desired crisp-tenderness. If you would like a thinner sauce, thin with water (I don’t do this). Discard bay leaf.
4. Garnish with additional optional fresh basil, cilantro, lime zest, lime juice and Sriracha to taste. Serve with rice.

RECIPE NOTES

**Chicken is much easier to slice if partially frozen. It will thaw quickly once sliced. You can slice your chicken and red bell peppers in advance for even quicker meal prep.

Recipe Source:carlsbadcravings.com