This Thai-inspired Red Curry Chicken Soup is perfect comfort food. Tender chicken, fresh veggies, creamy coconut milk, and red curry paste all come together to form a slightly sweet, slightly tangy, and flavorful soup.

A Delicious Comfort Food Recipe: Red Curry Chicken Soup

There is something so comforting about a hearty bowl of chicken soup, but you know what’s even better? A Thai inspired red curry chicken soup that’s packed with delicious Thai curry flavor and zucchini noodles. THE BEST.

I love Thai curries so much and the idea of turning one into a soup sounded like absolute heaven to me.

If you have never had red curry paste this soup is a great first introduction. Red curry has a delicious flavor, is milder than green curry, and easy to find at your local grocery store.

Watch How to Make this Recipe

red curry chicken soup ingredients

What’s in Red Curry Paste

If you have never used red curry paste before it is absolutely delicious and my second favorite of the curry flavors (my first is green!). Red curry paste is made up of red pepper, garlic, lemongrass, galangal (Thai ginger), and makrut (sometimes called kaffer) lime leaves. It is also made up of several spices like coriander, turmeric, black peppercorn, and cumin.

For this recipe I used this brand of curry paste and the ingredients are red chili pepper, garlic, lemongrass, galangal, salt, shallot, spice, and kaffer lime.

I like to keep a jar of red curry paste in my pantry at all times. You can combine coconut milk and red curry paste to make a quick curry with protein and veggies, or add it to a stir-fry or marinade for even more flavor.

Red vs. Green Curry

Some of the most common curries are red curry and green curry, and many people are often confused about which curry to use. I personally love both red and green curry, but they both have slightly different flavors.

While it is easy to assume that red curry would be the spicier of the curries, red curry paste is actually milder. The green chilies that are used to make green curry paste are actually spicier which makes green curry paste the spicier of the two.

Where Can I Buy Red Curry Paste?

You can find red curry paste in the Asian aisle of your local grocery store. The canned coconut milk and red curry paste are usually found in the same aisle.

If you have an Asian grocery store near you, like H-Mart, you can also buy it there. If you are doing a Whole30, be sure to check the label for any non-compliant oils like soybean oil.

veggies and aromatics in pot

What is Full Fat Coconut Milk?

Coconut milk and red curry paste go together like PB&J. This recipe uses full-fat canned coconut milk to give the soup a delicious creaminess and slight coconut flavor.

This kind of coconut milk is different than the variety you find in the refrigerator section near the dairy or almond milk. Canned coconut milk is shelf-stable and found in the International aisle of most grocery stories.

When you are buying canned coconut milk for this recipe, the best kind to use is the full-fat variety. Full-fat coconut milk has a higher concentration of coconut and a lower water content which helps make soup perfectly creamy.

chicken and aromatics in pot

How to Make Red Curry Chicken Soup

Step 1 – The first step to make this red curry chicken soup is to cook the ginger, garlic, onion, and red pepper in a little oil over medium until they are just slightly tender. This is also a great time to add the salt during this steps to help develop more flavor.

Step 2 – Next, add four tablespoons of the red curry paste and stir until well combined. Then, add in the diced chicken breast and stir until until the veggies, chicken, and curry paste are all evenly mixed in.

Step 3 – Next, add chicken broth, coconut milk, lime juice, and seasonings like fish sauce and coconut aminos to the pot. Let the soup come to a boil and then reduce the heat down to a simmer for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Give it a taste and add more salt or fish sauce if you want the soup to be a bit saltier.

Step 4 – The final step is to serve the soup over fresh zucchini noodles. To do this, just place the zucchini noodles in a bowl and ladle the soup over top. Finish the soup off with more fresh lime juice, green onion, and cilantro.

More Soup Recipes to Love

Get all of our best healthy soup recipes, here!

I hope you give this Red Curry Chicken Soup a try! It’s so flavorful and easy to make!

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red curry chicken soup in bowl with spoon

Thai Inspired Red Curry Chicken Soup (Whole30, Paleo, Low-Carb)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 27 reviews
  • Author: Ashlea Carver
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 4-6 1x
  • Category: Main Dish
  • Method: Stovetop
  • Cuisine: Thai
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Description

This Thai Red Curry Chicken Soup is perfect comfort food. Tender chicken, fresh veggies, creamy coconut milk, and red curry paste all come together to form a slightly sweet, slightly tangy, and flavorful soup. Instead of traditional noodles, this recipe uses zucchini noodles to add in even more fresh veggies and fiber. This Thai Red Curry Soup is also Whole30 compliant, gluten-free, and low-carb.

Instead of traditional noodles, this recipe uses zucchini noodles to add in even more fresh veggies and fiber. This Thai Red Curry Soup is also Whole30 compliant, gluten-free, and low-carb.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1.5 pound chicken breast, diced
  • ½ large red onion, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 tbsp minced ginger
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 2 tbsp coconut aminos
  • 4 tbsp red curry paste
  • 2 makrut lime leaves
  • 1 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
  • 115oz can of full-fat coconut milk
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup lime juice
  • 4 zucchini spiralized into noodles, for serving
  • Green onion, for garnish
  • Cilantro, for garnish

Instructions

  1. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat. Once hot add in ½ tbsp of coconut or avocado oil and then add the ginger, garlic, red onion, red bell pepper, and lime leaves to the pot. Season with salt while they cook. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the veggies start to become slightly tender.
  2. Add the red curry paste and diced chicken breast and stir until well combined.
  3. Add the chicken chicken broth, coconut milk, lime juice, fish sauce, and coconut aminos to the pot. Let the soup come to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Let the soup simmer for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Give it a taste and add more salt or fish sauce if you want the soup to be a bit saltier.
  4. Serve the soup over fresh zucchini noodles. To do this, place the desired amount of zucchini noodles in a bowl and ladle the hot soup over top. Finish the soup off with more fresh lime juice, green onion, and cilantro. Enjoy!

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49 Comments

  1. This was delicious. I used toasted sesame oil to brown my chicken in before sauteing my veggies. I added carrots and celery to the aromatics and spinach and peas at the end. What a yummy bowl of soup! Thanks for the inspo! 🙂 Cheers!






  2. Absolutely perfect perfect perfect recipe. I have tried others but this one is a keeper. I will be making this on a regular basis.






    1. Ashlea Carver says:

      I’m so glad you loved it, Gerry!

  3. Love this, what a beautiful color and wonderful flavor.






  4. Do you add the red onion with the other veggies? It isn’t listed in the Method. Thanks

    1. Ashlea Carver says:

      Hi, Sara – yes!

  5. See the ingrediants call for half a red onion but dont see it in the recipe, assumed it goes in with the garlic/ginger… overall though I really like this dish because its cheap and easy to make with good flavor. Id maybe add a little brown sugar to sweeten it up a bit~






  6. hi! i noticed this recipe called for half a red onion but dont see it in any of the steps? I assumed it goes in with the garlic and ginger?






    1. Ashlea Carver says:

      yes! thanks for letting me know, Nico!

  7. Looks great! I don’t see a link for the brand of Red Curry that you like to you. Would you please share?

    Can’t wait to make this!






    1. Ashlea Carver says:

      Hi, Susan! I really like Mae Ploy red curry!

  8. Juliet (mom) ❤️ Kariuki says:

    A lot of the recipes on here are usually a hit and miss for me. That’s why I’m glad I picked this one. It was the best Thai soup I’ve had. The ingredients were easily found and the recipe came together quickly. Thanks for sharing!

  9. Nicole Law says:

    This was so good! I added mushrooms aster reading some of the reviews. I also added butternut squash because I had it on hand and needed to use it. I won’t do that again, it just didn’t hold up, but everything else was great. My only critique is that I couldn’t see the brand of red curry you used and the soup wasn’t as spicy as I’d hoped. I added a good amount of cayenne but I was looking for the curry heat. Next time I’ll go to a real Asian grocery story to get the curry.






  10. This is a great red curry soup base recipe, but I felt it needed more soy sauce (I used in place of the coconut aminos) and lime juice to counter the amount of fish sauce, and I also felt it badly needed sugar to balance all the flavors.






  11. Dude! This was bomb! Impressed my beautiful wife!






    1. Ashlea Carver says:

      I’m so glad! LOVE that!

  12. I made this tonight. The ingredients are so simple & the soup comes together quickly! I followed the recipe as is, poured the hot soup over zucchini noodles & devoured it! I can’t say enough about how tasty this soup is! My husband loved it too! Thanks so much for sharing! It will become part of my soup rotation for sure!!

  13. Christina says:

    This soup is delicious!! I loved adding the zucchini and cilantro to this dish!
    Bravo!!!






  14. Delicious and so easy to make! I ate it on its own for soup and loved it but would probably eat it with rice in the future.






  15. Bernadette Shilliam says:

    Incredibly tasty! Rather than zoodles, we served it over a bed of fresh spinach, and it was a huge hit!






  16. Dr. Tseng says:

    Oh my goodness, this was so delicious and tasted just like Tom kha I grew up with. Amazing job and thanks for making my Whole30 dreams come true!






    1. Natalie Perkins (ATHT) says:

      You’re so welcome, Dr. Tseng! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thanks for sharing!