Thai Yellow Chicken Curry

Thai Yellow Chicken Curry is a delicious example of the curry dishes Thailand is famous for. This luscious, creamy coconut sauce would be considered mild by Thai standards. The ginger and red chiles added near the end infuse some heat and flavour into the sauce but are left large enough to be visible so they are not eaten.

In Thailand curries vary from region to region and are made with a pungent curry paste. The paste recipes vary from family to family and are often passed down from generation to generation. Depending on the ingredients and amounts used each paste has a distinct colour therefore common names for curry paste are red, yellow and green. Masaman (with a few variations of this spelling) and Panang curry pastes are also unique and interesting.

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this gluten free recipe

Is Curry Paste Gluten Free?

Curry paste is a combination of spices and herbs so should naturally be gluten free. The recipes vary but when I taught a cooking class with a request for vegan options I found out the store bought curry paste was vegan. When I first started making Thai curries these pastes weren't readily available so I bought all the ingredients and made them from scratch. Nowadays I'm happy the store bought is gluten free and easy to find.

There are many curry pastes available in Asian markets, well stocked grocery stores and online. Cock brand curry pastes, sold in plastic tubs, are all gluten free including yellow, red, green, panang and massaman. (At the time of writing.) You can also find curry paste in smaller, individual use packages, so look and see what you can find.

Everyday to Gourmet

Thai chicken curries are traditionally made with bone-in chicken cut through the bone. When I'm entertaining I prefer to make this dish with boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces. It's easier for guests to eat and for me...it's all about the sauce anyway!

Be sure to serve plenty of rice with this dish to soak up the sauce. Any rice will do but if you want to make a special Thai meal you can serve this Yellow Chicken Curry with Thai Jasmine rice.

If you have a favourite curry or any story about curry I'd love to hear about it in the comments below.

More Thai Recipes

• Shrimp Pad Thai
• Spicy Shrimp Soup
• Jasmine Coconut Rice
• Cucumber Carrot Salad
• Dairy Free Coconut Ice Cream

A Travel Tale - Thailand

From time to time I write a travel post for my friend Sue over at Travel Tales of Life. This is the one I wrote about our trip to Thailand and a recipe for Red Shrimp Curry.

Thai Yellow Chicken Curry

Thai Yellow Chicken Curry is a classic Thai curry. Keep yellow curry paste and coconut milk in your pantry to make this dish any time.

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: thai

Keyword: Thai Yellow Chicken Curry

Author: Cinde Little

Ingredients

• ▢ 4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• ▢ 3 cups coconut milk
• ▢ 2 tablespoon fish sauce
• ▢ 2-3 dried red chiles
• ▢ 3 tablespoon yellow curry paste
• ▢ 4 thin slices fresh ginger
• ▢ 1 Thai bird chile, halved and seeded (substitute 1 jalapeno or serrano)
• ▢ 2 cups coconut milk

Garnish

• ▢ chopped cilantro

OPTIONAL

• ▢ Add steamed bok choy or broccoli at the end

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Instructions

• Place a wok over medium-high heat and add the coconut milk, chicken and fish sauce. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil. Turn the heat down and simmer, uncovered until chicken is no longer pink, about 15 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon remove the chicken from the wok. Place in a bowl, cover and set aside.
• Return to heat and gently whisk curry paste into coconut mixture. Add the ginger and chiles. Return to a boil, decrease heat and simmer for 10 minutes to reduce slightly.
• Return chicken to wok and bring to a simmer. Add remaining coconut milk and stir. Increase heat to medium-high and cook for 5 minutes.
• Pour into serving dish and sprinkle with cilantro.