Pantry Friendly quick and easy 30 Minute Chicken Panang Curry tastes better than your favorite restaurant at a fraction of the price with easy to find ingredients!
I hope you had a very Happy Thanksgiving! I have so much to be thankful for, especially as we celebrated my 16th lung transplant anniversary yesterday! I have now lived as long with my new lungs as I did with my diseased ones thanks to continuous miracles. I posted a little about it on Instagram HERE. When my husband saw the photo, he said, “oh, that’s graphic!” But I wanted to share just how miraculous of a journey it has been for which I am grateful every single day or as more eloquently said in my book, “My Heroes Ask Wallflowers to Dance” ) (2012):
I am grateful every single day to be alive. I am grateful to breathe deeply. I am grateful to have found my sweetheart and I am so grateful I still get to spend time with him. I feel as though my mind is no longer set on cruise control; rather, I am an appreciative participant in every breath, in every task, in every joy…Being grateful chases away despair, negativity and hopelessness and instead transforms “what we do have into enough and more.”13 …A favorite proverb of mine reads, “I complained because I had no shoes until I saw a man who had no feet.”
I truly believe we are only as happy as we are grateful, and to me, everyday is Thanksgiving. Thank you so much for enjoying this journey with me and for your continuous support!
So while Chicken Panang Curry might seem random to share along with my lung transplant anniversary, the two actually belong together because I order Chicken Panang Curry almost every double lung transplant anniversary – and every time we visit my favorite Thai restaurant – its my absolute favorite Thai dish! The silky, creamy coconut milk with splashes of lime, fresh basil, tender chicken and crisp peppers all infused with the complex and satisfying flavorings of Panang Curry Paste are so addictingly delicious, I can never get enough! And that’s why I bring you my own version of intoxicatingly delicious Chicken Panang Curry.
I have been making my own version of Chicken Panang Curry at home for years now, and you will be amazed at how much this tastes just like the restaurant version – if not better than most. When I was perfecting my recipe, however, I found my local stores did not often carry the authentic Panang Curry ingredients of palm sugar, Kaffir lime leaves and Thai basil leaves. So after research and experimenting, I came up with my own “pantry friendly” version using easy substitutes. The only ingredient that you might have to order or purchase at a specialty store is the Panang Curry Paste ( I use this Panang Curry Paste
I hope you love this Chicken Panang Curry as much as me – or at least a fraction of my love – because then you will love it A LOT!
| Prep Time | 18 minutes |
| Cook Time | 12 minutes |
| Servings | servings |
- 1 tablespoon coconut/olive oil
- 2 tablespoons Panang curry paste (I use Mae Ploy - link below recipe)
- 2 pounds chicken breasts thinly sliced into 1/8” slices against the grain**
- 3 red bell peppers, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 14 oz. cans quality coconut milk (Chaokoh is my favorite)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup loosely packed basil leaves, torn
- fresh basil
- fresh lime juice
- Sriracha/Asian hot chili sauce
Ingredients
Garnish (optional)
| Rate this recipe! |
- Heat oil over medium high heat in large nonstick skillet. Add curry paste and saute for 1 minute.
- Add sliced chicken and cook just until chicken is no longer pink. Add ginger and garlic and saute 30 seconds.
- Add 1 1/2 cans coconut milk. Whisk cornstarch into remaining 1/2 can coconut milk then add to skillet. Stir in sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, bay leaf, thyme and salt. Simmer for 5 minutes then add red bell peppers and basil and simmer 2-3 minutes or until peppers are crisp tender. Discard bay leaf.
- Garnish with additional optional fresh basil, lime juice and Sriracha to taste. Serve with rice.
*2 tablespoons is an average heat - about a 3 spice level on the Thai 1-10 restaurant scale. You can always add additional Sriracha/Asian hot chili sauce to taste but can't take it back, so I would start with 2 tablespoons or less if you don't like any heat.
**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 meal prep.
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See my favorite Panang Curry Paste
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Slow Cooker Asian Sweet Chili Sesame Chicken
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Congratulations on your lung transplant anniversary! You are such a source of strength and inspiration! And the Panang Curry looks delicious!
Thank you so much Marie, you are so sweet! I so appreciate your kind words! All the best to you and yours!
I always order Panang Curry so I am SO Excited to try this! Thank you!!
I am excited FOR you Dee! I think you will absolutely love it! Enjoy!
I have been looking around at other recipes until finding this one and very keen to try it! Can i ask how you would cook it normally if you have access to all the hard to get ingredients (eg kaffir lime leaves and palm sugar)? I have access to pretty much any Asian ingredient and want to make it the best possible!
Thanks – Jamison
Hi Jamison, sorry for the delay as I had surgery this week but thanks for your comment. I would substitute the brown sugar with 2-3 tablespoons palm sugar as it is stronger than brown sugar. I would substitute the bay leaf, dried thyme and lime juice with 7 kaffir lime leaves, 3 torn into pieces, and 4 finely shredded (discard the stems) and then add lime juice to taste if needed. Hope this helps!
Have you ever tried freezing the curry after you prepare it? The Internet is giving me mixed reviews on freezing coconut milk.
Thanks!
Becky
Hi Becky, unfortunately coconut milk tends not to freeze well – the milk proteins and fat separated from the liquid, much like what happens when you freeze buttermilk. Sorry!
Can this be done in a slow cooker? If so what changes would I need to make?
Hi Claire! I have never tried this in the slow cooker but is should work great – it just might not get as creamy. I would add all of the ingredients except the bell peppers. You can even add the chicken whole and chop when cooked. Add the bell peppers the last 30/45 minutes and cook on high until crisp tender. Enjoy!
I have made this twice now, and let me tell you. It is DELICIOUS. It is SO creamy and decadent. I have also made this recipe once using all the ingredients as listed but I had to sub regular red curry paste, as the ONLY Asian food market in this area keeps unreliable hours and was closed. It was still very good! This recipe is so quick and easy but it tastes like I spent hours on it. It is definitely a favorite.
Hi Teri, I’m thrilled you love this recipe so much because it is one of my absolute favorites ever! you have great taste 🙂 I’ll have to give it a try with red curry paste some time, you’ve totally peaked my interest!