This recipe for Thai Fish Curry with Coconut Milk is brimming with seasonal veggies and bursting with delicious Thai flavors. A quick and easy dinner, perfect for both weeknights and special occasions. With a Video!
Tender flaky white fish and seasonal veggies are bathed in the most fragrant Coconut Curry Sauce infused with lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves- a fast and easy weeknight dinner that is full of amazing flavor. Serve this over coconut rice or cauliflower rice!
Why You’ll Love This!
- Loaded with veggies! A colorful, seasonal dish packed with vitamins and nutrients.
- Quick & easy! A simple one-pot method with familiar ingredients.
- Versatile! Enjoy for a comforting weeknight meal or serve this beautiful dish for a special occasion.
Fish Curry Ingredients
- White fish: Any firm ocean white fish will work well here (halibut, sea bass, Alaskan cod, escolar, ono, black cod, haddock, mahi mahi). Thicker cuts are best!
- Thai curry paste: Optional, but adds distinct rich and herbaceous flavor. Use Thai red curry paste, yellow curry paste, or green curry paste!
- Lime: You’ll need both zest and juice to infuse the fish with a tangy, citrusy aroma.
- Aromatics: Large shallots or a small onion (red, white, or yellow), garlic cloves, lemongrass stalks (use fresh, frozen, or lemongrass paste), turmeric root (or sub ground), fresh ginger (or ginger paste), and kaffir lime leaves (fresh, frozen, or dried).
- Fresh hot chilies: Use jalapeño, serrano, or red chillies to give the dish a nice heat.
- Chicken or fish stock: The flavorful, savory base for the curry.
- Vegetables: Carrots (or sub potatoes), red bell pepper, and green beans (or asparagus, snap peas, or snow peas). You can also add cauliflower, butternut, zucchini, dark leafy greens, or green peas.
- Coconut milk: Gives the dish a rich and creamy texture.
- Fish sauce: For saltiness, umami flavor, and depth.
- Fresh herbs: Chopped basil, cilantro, or scallions. Thai basil is great here!
How to Make Thai Fish Curry
Step 1: Prep the fish. Cut into large 2-inch chunks, pat dry, and place in a bowl. Season with salt, lime zest from one lime, and 1 tablespoon lime juice. Massage gently.
Step 2: Sauté aromatics. Heat coconut oil in an extra large sauté pan over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté until golden, 4 minutes. Add garlic, lemongrass, and fresh chilies, sautéing 3-4 minutes.
Reduce heat to low, then grate ginger and turmeric and add Thai curry paste, cooking 1 minute.
Step 3: Simmer. Add stock, kaffir lime leaves, salt, carrots, and bell pepper. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes until carrots are tender.
Tip: Kaffir lime leaves can be hard to find for many of you so I tested out some dried ones. I was surprised at the flavor- much better than I thought!
Tip: Make the rice at the same time- I used this pasta cooking method for the fastest cooking.
Step 4: Add coconut milk, fish sauce, and lime. Stir in coconut milk, fish sauce, and a generous squeeze of lime juice. Taste and adjust, adding more lime if desired.
Step 5: Taste. The broth should be salty with lots of lime and a little heat. Adjust to your taste, adding more fish sauce, Thai curry paste, or garlic chili paste. The flavors should be bold here, as they will mellow out with the addition of fish and veggies, and when being served over rice.
Step 6: Add fish and veggies. Nestle in the fish fillets and quick-cooking veggies. Simmer over medium low heat, and either spoon the broth over top or turn the fish over once the bottom half has cooked and become opaque, about 3-4 minutes. Alternatively, you can place the pot in a warm 350F oven to finish cooking.
Step 7: Garnish and serve. Sprinkle with Thai basil, regular basil or cilantro or scallions and serve with lime wedges over rice- or if going low-carb, try cauliflower rice.
What to Serve with Thai Fish Curry
Serve this Thai Fish Curry over a bowl of grains, like:
FAQs
Any firm white fish! Halibut, sea bass, Alaskan cod, escolar, black cod, haddock, or mahi mahi.
This curry will last 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Reheat gently on the stovetop.
We do not recommend freezing Thai Fish Curry as cooked fish does not freeze well and will become tough.
What I love about this recipe, besides the vibrant flavor, are all the seasonal veggies! Spring veggies like asparagus, peas or spinach, summer veggies like zucchini, eggplant and green beans, or fall veggies like butternut or cauliflower, all work here!
Feel free to mix it up, just paying attention to which veggies need longer to cook and which ones just need a quick simmer to keep them vibrant. You can always add a handful of baby spinach to add a burst of nutrients and color right at the end.
Hope you are having a glorious week. Breath some fresh air, move that beautiful body, let the sun kiss your face and give you some healing Vitamin D.
xoxo
More seafood & Fish recipes!
Thai Fish Curry Video
Thai Fish Curry
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Main, fish, keto
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Thai
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This recipe for Thai Fish Curry with Coconut Milk is brimming with seasonal veggies and bursting with delicious Thai flavors. A quick and easy dinner, perfect for both weeknights and special occasions.
Ingredients
- 1 – 1 1/2 pounds firm white fish- Halibut, Alaskan Cod, haddock, Black Cod, Sea Bass (thicker cuts are best)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- one lime- zest and juice
Coconut Thai Curry Sauce:
- 2–3 tablespoons coconut or olive oil
- 2 large shallots or 1 small onion- finely diced ( red, white or yellow)
- 4–6 garlic cloves
- 1– 2 fresh hot chilies- finely diced ( jalapeno, serrano, red chili)
- 3 tablespoons lemongrass, very finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons turmeric root, grated (or sub 1 teaspoon ground)
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
- 1–3 tablespoons Thai Curry Paste (optional) red, green, or yellow
- 2 cups chicken or fish stock
- 8 kaffir lime leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups carrots, diced (or sub potatoes)
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 14-ounce can coconut milk ( liquid and solids)
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- squeeze of lime
- 2 cups green beans, or asparagus, snap peas or snow peas
- 1/2 cup chopped basil, (Thai basil is great!) cilantro, scallions
Serve over jasmine rice, cauliflower rice, basmati rice, black rice or everyday quinoa.
Instructions
Cut the fish into large 2-inch chunks, pat dry and place in a bowl. Season with salt, lime zest from one lime and 1 tablespoon lime juice, and massage lightly to coat. Set aside.
In an extra-large saute pan, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute until golden, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, lemongrass and fresh chilies. Saute 3-4 more minutes, until fragrant. Turn heat to low. Grate the ginger and turmeric and add the Thai Curry paste if using, saute 1 minute. Add the chicken stock, kaffir lime leaves , salt, carrots and bell pepper. Cover, bring to a simmer and simmer gently for 5 minutes until the carrots are tender.
Once tender, stir in the coconut milk and fish sauce, and a generous squeeze of lime juice- start with half a lime, add more to taste.
Taste it- coconut broth should be salty, lime-y and a little spicy- and adjust to your taste. Add more fish sauce, Thai Curry paste, garlic chili paste, be bold here -keeping in mind all the flavors will mellow out with the addition of the fish, veggies and with it being served over rice.
Nestle in the fish, and quick cooking veggies. Simmer gently over medium low heat, spooning the coconut broth over the top, or turning the fish over after the bottom half is cooked and becomes opaque, about 3 -4 minutes. You can also place this in a warm 350F oven to fish cooking.
Garnish with basil or Thai basil, or cilantro and lime wedges.
Serve over rice or cauliflower rice.
Notes
Leftovers will keep up to 3 days in the fridge.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 ½ lbs halibut- Not including rice
- Calories: 371
- Sugar: 5.6 g
- Sodium: 1074.3 mg
- Fat: 21.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 13.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.8 g
- Fiber: 3.4 g
- Protein: 26.6 g
- Cholesterol: 56.3 mg
Delicious! Just made it for dinner. Loved it. It looked harder than it was.
Perfect! Happy you enjoyed.
Absolutely delicious and quick easy.
A winner!
Yay!
Hi. Can you make the broth in advance and add the fish before serving?
Yes of course!
Can I make broth ahead and freeze it
Yes Abby, it should freeze great!
Curry fish is like a flavorful ocean dance—fragrant spices swirling around tender fish, creating a dish that’s an absolute sensation for the taste buds! Whether it’s the rich, creamy texture or the harmonious blend of spices, there’s something so comforting that makes every bite an adventure.
Glad you enjoyed this!
This recipe is brimming with seasonal veggies and bursting with delicious Thai flavors. A quick and easy dinner, perfect for both weeknights and special occasions
Awesome to hear Nil!