The Best Thai Red Prawn Curry

Get ready for the BEST Thai Red Prawn Curry you’ve ever tasted! This quick and easy recipe can be made in one pot and is ready in under 20 minutes, perfect for a weeknight dinner! Love prawns? Try my Prawn Noodles too. Using super accessible, easily found supermarket ingredients, the flavours from this creamy coconut prawn curry sauce are unbelievable. It is guaranteed to be a winner with all the family!

Why this recipe works

This Thai Red Prawn Curry with Vegetables is great any time of year, but I especially love it in the colder months. It’s warming and comforting and absolutely perfect for when time is limited and you fancy something wholesome and nutritious! The flavours produced from this prawn curry recipe are seriously out of this world, especially considering it is cooked in such little time! I love the subtle, zingy, citrusy notes running through the curry, paired with the lemongrass that give it that fresh, uplifting taste!

This coconut prawn curry is a quick and simple recipe to make and was inspired by my Vegetable Curry. Both these recipes are insanely quick to make and pair so well with my How to Cook Quinoa guide or my Gluten Free Flatbread to mop up every last drop of the delicious curry sauce!

Having said that, Kaeng Phet (which is the traditional name of an authentic Thai Red Curry) is often served with rice. You could use jasmine rice, brown rice, or even coconut rice. If you are using a rice cooker, you will need to start your rice cooker about 10 minutes before you start the Thai Red Prawn Curry recipe to make sure everything finishes at the same time!

If you’re looking for a few healthy homemade Thai dishes then do try my Peanut Butter Noodles or Vegan Pad Thai or Vegan Laksa or even try my Vegetable Thai Green Curry.

I also added this recipe into my collection of 21 Gluten Free Easter Recipes.

Ingredients to make Thai Red Prawn Curry

1. Coconut Milk – a staple in many Thai curries. It helps turn the red curry paste into a creamy delight. Use 1 x 400ml tin of full fat coconut milk. Light coconut milk works but the sauce is thinner.
2. Red Thai Curry Paste – This is a combination of red chilli peppers, garlic, sea salt, lemongrass and often turmeric. It gives a warm and gentle subtle heat to this coconut prawn curry recipe. Check the label: most Thai red curry pastes are gluten free, but a few contain wheat. If you have some spare, make my Thai Curry Noodle Soup.
3. Lemongrass – Lemongrass brings a flavourful pop to any dish. If you haven’t looked for it at your local supermarket before, it should be in the produce section near the ginger! I also use lemongrass in my Vegan Thai Curry.
4. Red Pepper – I’ve used a red pepper in this Thai Prawn Red Curry as it has a slightly sweeter flavour in comparison to green or yellow peppers. This is because it is riper, so has had longer to sweeten up!
5. Green Beans – these may not be the most common vegetable that you’ll find in a Thai prawn curry recipe, but I love the texture they give to this recipe, plus they are extra colour and nutrients!
6. Lime Zest – adds a citrusy flavour and helps to balance the other delicious flavours! I find lime pairs so well with lemongrass and helps to cut through the heaviness of the coconut milk.
7. Basil – this is the hero ingredient for this Red Thai Prawn Curry recipe, its fresh flavours really bring this prawn red curry to the next level!
8. Maple Syrup – is a unique addition, but one that makes such a difference! It adds a subtle sweetness to this prawn red curry!
9. Prawns – You can’t very well have a prawn curry without prawns! I’ve used frozen prawns in this Thai Red Curry for ease!

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions

• Coconut Milk – You could substitute coconut milk for coconut cream. This may produce a slightly thicker sauce, but this can be adjusted by adding a small amount of water to create your desired consistency.
• Maple Syrup – If you don’t have maple syrup, you can use an alternative sweetener such as honey or sugar. If using sugar I would suggest 1-2 tsp.
• Lime – If you don’t have fresh lime available, you could use a lemon instead.
• Prawns – You could choose to substitute these with an alternative such as chicken. However you would need to cook the chicken first. If you want to make this a vegan Red Thai Curry then swapping the prawns for tofu or tempeh would work well. Or if you fancy white fish, try my Fish Curry or Cod Curry.
• Vegetables – Feel free to substitute the pepper and green beans for vegetables of your choice. You could change it up with bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, baby corn or any left over vegetables you have left over in your fridge to help reduce food waste!

Variations

• Kid-friendly – If your kids aren’t ready for prawns yet, try chicken instead or keep it just to vegetables. Although this recipe is mild for everyone to enjoy, there are warm flavours running through it. If you have a child that is particularly sensitive to spice you could reduce the quantity of Thai Red Curry paste. Alternatively, I have a great 10 Minute Peanut Butter Curry recipe that you could try! If cooking with children, you could even try out a dessert with them such as my Oat Cookies.
• Deluxe – This is the perfect recipe to cook if you have dinner guests. It is made in one pot, so minimal washing up and is ready in under 20 minutes! To take this Thai Red Prawn Curry to the next level, I’d serve it with white basmati rice, freshly chopped coriander and lime wedges. To make it look really impressive you could even use tiger prawns! I’d then follow with my Vegan Chocolate Tart, as it’s a total show stopper, with minimal prep required!
• Spicy – As I mentioned above this recipe is fairly mild so that everyone can enjoy it. If you enjoy spice, then feel free to add some freshly chopped chillies into the recipe. For more heat, try my Cherry Tomato Pasta Sauce with a pinch of chilli flakes.
• Sauce – Short on time? My Thai Coconut Sauce makes a brilliant base for this curry too.
• Authentic – Add 1 tbsp fish sauce (check it is gluten free) and 2 to 3 kaffir lime leaves with the coconut milk.

What to serve with Thai red prawn curry

Serve with jasmine or basmati rice (about 75g dry rice each), rice noodles, or my gluten free flatbread. Finish with lime wedges, coriander and sliced chilli.

How to make Thai Red Prawn Curry

Hint: If you are using tiger prawns, jumbo prawns, or other large prawns, you may need to allow for a longer cook time.

Using frozen prawns? Defrost them in the fridge overnight, or in a bowl of cold water for 10 minutes, then pat dry so the sauce stays thick.

Leftovers

If you have extra Thai red curry with prawns left over, fear not it will store really well and the flavours will taste even better the next day! Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Please note: you can only reheat prawns once when cooked. If using raw prawns, you can cook the recipe and reheat it once. However if using cooked prawns from the start of this recipe, you won’t be able to reheat the recipe.

Recipe FAQs

More Prawn Recipes

• Prawn Curry
• Prawn Linguine
• Prawn Salad
• Prawn Noodles
• Dairy Free Fish Pie
• Garlic Prawns

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