Thai Red Curry with Chicken and Kabocha Squash
This Thai red curry with chicken and Kabocha squash recipe is an easy and healthy fall dish using Kabocha squash. The extra creamy texture comes from the coconut milk and the squash cooked together in red curry paste, creating just the perfect combination like that of a curry and stew dish.
- Prep time
- 20 min
- Cook time
- 20 min
- Yield
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped small
- 2-3 small shallots or sub 1/2 medium purple onions, sliced into small pieces
- Up to ½ cup red curry paste, store-bought (Mae Ploy brand preferably). Add 2 Tbsp if using a homemade curry paste. Start with 1-2 tablespoons and add more at the end to suit your spice level.
- 1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk (Chaokoh brand preferably)
- 2 lbs Kabocha, cut and scrapped and chopped into med chunks about 2 inches thick
- 1 lb chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces about 3x2 inch long
- 1 small carton (8.5 oz) coconut cream, about 1 cup. I used the Chaokoh brand.
- 1 1/4 cup water or light stock
- ½ - 2 tbsp fish sauce (depending on the brand and taste, adjust accordingly). I used the squid brand.
- 1/4 cup + 1 tsp brown sugar
- 3-4 kaffir lime leaves sliced thin
- 3 Thai long red chilis, fresh or sub-Serrano peppers. Deseed and rinse.
- 1 cup Thai basil
Instructions
- 1
Fry the garlic and shallot in oil in a dutch over medium-high heat. Fry until fragrant.
- 2
Add the curry paste, and break the big chunks into small ones.
- 3
Add coconut milk, stir it all in, and continue breaking up the curry paste chunks.
- 4
Stir until you have a creamy orange sauce
- 5
Bring everything to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium.
- 6
Add the chicken and the kabocha squash and mix well with the sauce.
- 7
Stir everything together for 1 minute or so.
- 8
Add coconut cream and water/stock.
- 9
(If using water, add water to the opened coconut milk can, swoosh together, then pour into the Dutch oven. Stir it all in and cook for 10 minutes or until the kabocha squash is tender but soft.
- 10
Add brown sugar, fish sauce, chili peppers, and kaffir lime leaves, and let it simmer for 5-7 more minutes. Taste the flavor of the curry; if too salty, add more sugar. If too sweet, add more fish sauce.
- 11
Add the basil and mix it well. Turn off the heat. Let the curry sit for about 5 minutes before serving.
- 12
Serve over cooked Jasmine rice and garnish with more basil and kaffir lime leaves if desired.
- 13
That's it! Enjoy your delicious Red Thai Curry with Chicken and kabocha squash!