This Coconut Curry Chicken is on your table in less than 30 minutes, made with pantry friendly ingredients all in one skillet! Readers call it “AMAZING,” “absolutely beyond delicious” and “the best chicken curry recipe ever!!!” Follow my tips and tricks for customizable veggies, heat and the creamiest coconut sauce!

This Coconut Chicken Curry Recipe is the perfect weeknight meal
30 MINUTE WONDER. The chicken and vegetables simmer in curried coconut milk for the most irresistible 30-minute meal of your life. It’s warm, creamy, comforting and tastes like it’s been simmering for hours but only takes minutes!
TAPESTRY OF FLAVOR. The layers of complex flavors create a tapestry of savory, salty, sweet and sour in every bite. It’s a balancing act that results in a savory depth of flavor like no other.
ACCESSIBLE INGREDIENTS. I’ve used the same rave-review formula of my red curry chicken and yellow curry chicken to make this Coconut Curry Chicken but with easy-to-find yellow curry powder.
MAKE IT ON REPEAT. This chicken curry with coconut milk is huge on flavor, low on effort and belongs in your easy weeknight dinner back pocket!

Why you’ll love this Coconut Curry Chicken Recipe
In summary, you will love this Coconut Curry Chicken recipe because:


COCONUT CURRY CHICKEN INGREDIENTS
The recipe ingredient for this Coconut Curry Chicken recipe might look lengthy but I promise the recipe is super simple – you are basically sautéing your chicken, veggies then dumping in the rest of the ingredients. Let’s take a closer look at what you’ll need (measurements in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post):


WHAT CHICKEN IS BEST FOR COCONUT CURRY CHICKEN?
You can use either chicken breasts or chicken thighs for this Thai Coconut Curry Chicken recipe. I tend to use chicken breasts because they are leaner and emerge wonderfully juicy in this preparation, but you are welcome to use chicken thighs as well.
You can even use leftover rotisserie chicken and add it to the skillet along with the garlic and ginger. This would not be my first choice however, because the flavor is only on the outside of the chicken instead of the curry permeating the chicken as it cooks.

DO I HAVE TO USE FULL FAT COCONUT MILK IN THIS COCONUT CHICKEN
I don’t insist on full fat coconut milk but I HIGHLY suggest it if you would like restaurant-style creamy, flavorful Coconut Curry Chicken. Light coconut milk simply isn’t as thick or flavorful so you’re missing out on both flavor and texture. If you do use light coconut milk, I suggest adding 1 teaspoon cornstarch to help thicken it up.

HOW TO MAKE COCONUT CHICKEN CURRY
Let’s take a closer look at how to make this recipe with step-by-step photos (full recipe in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post):
FOR THE OREO CRUST:


- Step 4: Add coconut milk. Next, stir in half of the coconut milk. Whisk the remaining half of coconut milk with a little cornstarch and add it to the skillet. While cornstarch definitely isn’t authentic in Coconut Chicken Curry, it is a fabulous trick I’ve discovered and use in all of my curry recipes to create a creamier coconut sauce.

- Step 5: Add remaining ingredients: Dump in all the remaining ingredients and simmer for about 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens and the vegetables reach desired crisp-tenderness. The time will depend on which vegetables you’ve chosen to use and how small they are chopped.
- Step 6: Garnish! Top with optional fresh basil, cilantro, lime juice and chili sauce and dig in!

CAN I PREP COCONUT CURRY IN ADVANCE?
Absolutely! You can chop your chicken, aromatics and vegetables all in advance and store them in separate airtight containers in the refrigerator until ready to use. You can even whisk all of the curry sauce ingredients together and refrigerate in an airtight container.

MAKE AHEAD COCONUT CURRY
This Coconut Curry Chicken tastes even better the next day as the flavors have time to build and meld. This makes this curry fabulous for meal prep or on the go lunches.
For meal prep lunches, simply divide the coconut curry between airtight containers along with rice, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

CHICKEN COCONUT CURRY RECIPE TIPS

CHICKEN COCONUT CURRY RECIPE VARIATIONS

CAN I MAKE THIS VEGETARIAN COCONUT CURRY?
Absolutely! You can replace the chicken extra-firm tofu or replace the chicken with extra vegetables. Place the tofu in a pie plate, top with a heavy plate and weigh down with 2 heavy cans (to release water). Set aside for 10 minutes while you finish prepping the ingredients.

How to Customize Coconut Curry?
In addition to swapping the vegetables for your favorites or what you have on hand, this Coconut Curry Chicken can be customized in many different ways to make it YOUR favorite coconut curry. It can be made spicy, not spicy, sweet or more savory, more or less tangy, with or without buttery cashews etc.
•Want sweeter curry? Add more brown sugar
•Want saltier curry? Add more fish sauce or soy sauce
•Want tangier curry? Add more lime juice
•Want spicier curry? Add more chili sauce
•Want thinner curry? Add chicken broth
•Want thicker curry? Add a cornstarch slurry
•Want more crunch? Add cashews, peanuts or chickpeas


WHAT TO SERVE WITH COCONUT CHICKEN CURRY
This chicken curry with coconut milk should be served with a side of rice to mellow out and absorb the rich, robust sauce. It is delicious with:

HOW TO STORE CHICKEN COCONUT CURRY
Coconut Curry Chicken should be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator. When stored properly, it is good for up to five days.

REHEATING COCONUT CURRY CHICKEN
Microwave individual portions of Coconut Curry Chicken for one minute, stir then continue to microwave at 30 second intervals until heated through. For larger portions, gently warm in a skillet until heated through.
If you are reheating with rice, I highly recommend basmati rice. It does not clump or dry out like most other rice varieties.
FREEZING COCONUT CURRY CHICKEN
Coconut Curry Chicken freezes well because the base of the sauce is coconut milk instead of dairy. The only issues you might have with freezing your curry is the texture of the vegetables. Some vegetables freeze better than others, so just keep that in mind if you are making this coconut curry specifically to freeze.
To freeze: let the coconut curry chicken cool to room temperature then transfer it to an airtight container or plastic freezer bag and squeeze out any excess air. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
Coconut Chicken Curry Recipe FAQS
For this Coconut Curry Chicken, we are going to use yellow curry powder. This is the curry powder you find in the spices section of your grocery store. It will probably just be labeled “curry powder” instead of yellow curry powder.
The amazing thing about curry powder and curry pastes, is they are a combination of many ingredients that result in delightfully complex flavors – but all the work has been done for you!
Curry powder typically contains:
Ground turmeric
Ground coriander seeds
ground cumin seeds
ground galangal
ground fennel seeds
ground mustard seeds
ground peppercorns
ground cloves
chili powder
Although I use the same template as my red curry, this Coconut Curry Chicken boasts a very different profile.
Red curry boasts a bold, spicy flavor with a depth from red chiles, crushed garlic, lemongrass, shallots, ginger.
This Coconut Curry Chicken with yellow curry, on the other hand, boasts more of an Indian flavor, in my opinion. It is a tad sweeter and tangier than red or green curry due to the high amount of turmeric. It is less spicy, so you may want to add more chili sauce than you traditionally do.
We are going to combine the curry powder with coconut milk, soy sauce, fish sauce, lime juice, garlic, and ginger to create a velvety Coconut Curry Chicken that is salty from the fish sauce, grounded by the savory soy sauce, tangy from the lime juice, mildly sweet from the curry powder and coconut milk, with a gentle heat from the chili sauce. In short, this Coconut Curry is mildly sweet, tangy, salty, savory and lick-the-plate delicious!
Yes, this Coconut Curry Chicken recipe is gluten free!
I love making this Coconut Curry Chicken recipe with chicken, green beans and cauliflower because cauliflower and curry belong together in my opinion. I love them together so much, I’ve used curried cauliflower in both my Roasted Cauliflower recipe and my Cauliflower soup recipe.
That being said, you can customize this Thai Coconut Chicken Curry recipe with a number of different vegetables:
zucchini
bell peppers
squash
sweet potatoes
edamame
bok choy
peas
snow peas
broccoli

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Chicken Coconut Curry
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound chicken breasts sliced into 1/4” slices then 2” pieces
- 1/2 large onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper chopped into 1” pieces
- 5 oz. (1 cup) green beans chopped into 1” pieces
- 2 cups cauliflower chopped into bite size pieces
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon curry powder
- 1 13.5 oz. can coconut milk (I like Chaokoh)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons less sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon fish sauce may sub soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons Asian/Thai Sweet Chili Sauce like Mae Ploy
- 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1-3 teaspoons Asian hot chili paste/sauce or more to taste
Garnish
- cilantro
- crushed peanuts
Instructions
- Heat oil over medium high heat in large skillet. Add chicken, onions and curry powder and cook just until chicken is no longer pink. Add bell peppers, cauliflower, green beans, ginger and garlic, and sauté 1 minute.
- Add half of the coconut milk (eyeball it). Mix remaining coconut milk with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and add to skillet along with all remaining ingredients (expect Garnishes).
- Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens and the vegetables reach desired crisp-tenderness.
- Garnish with additional optional fresh basil, cilantro, lime zest, lime juice and chili sauce to taste. Serve with rice.
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Stephanie says
Made a few meals last week to stock up the fridge for my 93 year old mother-in-law who’s been stuck at home for months because of the coronavirus. She LOVES Indian curry so thought this would be fun even though it’s Thai. She absolutely loved it and raved about the flavorful sauce and crunchy veggies, gave her rice to serve it with too. I did only use 1T of fish sauce so it wouldn’t get too funk, because i can only take a mild amount of it. I snuck a taste and was delicious, can’t wait to make it for my family too.
MC says
I’m so glad I tried this recipe – we all loved it! It’s very easy too. Usually I’m cooking something in the slow cooker or instant pot so it was actually a nice change just to cook something easy on the stove! ha ha!
I used snow peas instead of green beans and added red pepper but no other vegetables and it turned out great. It was just enough spicy and sweet without being too strong for those in my family who don’t like really spicy foods.
Jen says
Thanks so much MC, I’m so happy your whole family loved it!
Caryn says
This was amazing! Such great flavor! I added a cup of chicken broth for more sauce. Made it with the red peppers and cilantro and potatoes. Thanks so much!
Jen says
You’re so welcome Caryn, I’m so pleased you loved it!
Charity says
Wow. This is a keeper. I am looking forward to trying different vegetables in the future.
Jen says
Thanks so my Charity, I’m so glad you loved it! I hope find many new favorites here!
Riley says
I made this last week and it was absolutely AMAZING! Do you know if you could dump all of this in a crock pot? Any tips?
Jen says
Thanks Riley, I’m so pleased it was a hit! Yes you should be able to dump everything into the crockpot. I would just hold the bell peppers until the last half of cooking. Good luck!
Jane E says
Oh my goodness…LOVE the flavor!!
Jen says
Thanks so much Jane!
Vicki Jenkins says
Super easy and super delish!
My family loved it.
Jen says
Thanks so much Vicki!
Beck and Bulow says
This recipe is amazing! This was my first-time making chicken curry and it exceeded expectations!
Jen says
Thanks so much, I’m thrilled it was a hit!
Daizie says
OMG! This recipe is so delicious and so easy and quick to make. This will be one of my favourite dishes that I will make on a regular basis.
Thank you.
Jen says
I love hearing that, thank you so much Daizie!
Domenica Piragine says
Made this dish exactly as it is written. One word, “Amazing”!
Jen says
Thank you so much Domenica, I’m so pleased you loved it!
Stephanie says
The family absolutely loved this recipe. Indian curry spice is truly one of my favorite spices and I make a traditional curry chicken on a regular basis but giving it the Thai spin with coconut milk, basil and fish sauce was so flavorful. Thank you for a tasty, easy & quick recipe.
Jen says
I’m so pleased this was a hit with the entire family Stephanie! I have a hard time making any curry other than Thai – LOL!!
Teri says
This was as good as all the reviewers said!! I was worried about the number of ingredients but it is soooo good. Yum! Keeper recipe!
Jen says
Thanks Teri, I’m so pleased it lived up to the reviews!
Kris says
Jen I have to tell you this is the best chicken curry recipe ever!!! We have had it on repeat! Exactly per your recipe!!! Sooo amazing! Our entire family just loves it!!! We double it to have leftovers! I thought I better let you know! Thank you!
Jen says
Thank you so much for the ultimate compliment and for making my day Kris! I’m thrilled this recipe is a repeat family favorite!
Kate says
I have never made comments about recipes but I had to with this one. WOW…this recipe is absolutely beyond delicious. I will be making it again and again and again. I have a feeling this won’t be the last time I comment on your recipes. Great flavour and rather eat this than restaurant food!!!!!
Jen says
Thanks so much Kate, I’m honored this recipe blew you away! I hope you enjoy exploring my recipes and hopefully discover many new favorites!
Dawn says
Wanted to do something different with shrimp, WOW was this a great choice. So flavorful and delicious. My family really enjoyed it. Served with a brown basmati rice. Adjusted to our spice level. This will definitely go in the meal rotation. Thank you!
Jen says
Thank you so much, Dawn! I am so happy that you and your family enjoyed it, and I’m so pleased this has made it into the meal rotation! I hope you are having a great weekend!
Kady says
This is my go to recipe for curry. I tried another one not too long ago and my husband was upset and said he missed this recipe. He said if it’s not this one he doesn’t want it lol. I love how versatile it is with veggies. I used carrots, celery, mushroom, peppers, potatoes, and green beans! I also used chicken thighs instead and but the sauce is the star of the show! I don’t change a thing about it! Thank you for sharing your delicious curry recipe!
Jen says
Haha I am honored that he loves it so much! I’m so glad that you were able to make it your own, it sounds like an amazing meal!
Margaret O’Brien says
In addition to cauliflower & green beans, I added carrots, peas and spinach. I may have added more than the allotted veggies, so would double the sauce next time.
Delish!
Thank you
Jen says
Hi Margaret! Yes definitely increase the amount of sauce in proportion to the amount of veggies you add 🙂 That sounds yummy and I am so glad it turned out delicious for you!
Susan Brown says
This was SOOOOO good. Followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect. I made it for my son and DIL who just had a baby and they loved it. I tried a little and now I want to make some for my husband and I. Will make again many times over!
Jen says
Hi Susan! Congrats on your new grand baby! So exciting! I’m so glad that you loved this recipe and that you’ll be making it again!