A healthy and filling vegetarian Thai yellow curry recipe, packed with wholesomeness and flavor.
The Best Thai Yellow Curry
Lately, I’ve been craving so much Thai food.
I’m lucky to have multiple good Thai restaurants near me, and I’ve been eating my fill of red and yellow curry, panang, massaman, pad khing, and so many other dishes these past few months.
It’s inspired me to begin creating my own versions of the Thai classics – after all, sometimes you don’t want to have to go out to a restaurant in order to satisfy your cravings for takeout. And this easy Thai yellow curry recipe can be made in your pajamas if you wish!
While I do have another Thai curry recipe on here—for Thai Coconut & Peanut Butter Curry—this time I wanted to create a recipe you can make without jarred curry paste and one with options to make it both soy and coconut-free so that everyone can enjoy it.
This is a mild curry dish, making it great for kids and those who aren’t big on spicy foods. However, you can easily make it a spicier curry if you’d prefer by simply adding a pinch of cayenne or a handful of diced chilies to the curry when you add the other vegetables. Adding extra fresh ginger also ups the spiciness. I kind of really love fresh ginger.
Like many Thai dishes, this homemade curry is versatile and can be modified to suit different dietary requirements. For example, I chose to add tofu this time but another protein source could easily be substituted. Or you can even leave the protein out altogether and simply add more vegetables to the curry instead. Chopped pineapple would also be a nice addition to the recipe.
If you try the recipe, be sure to rate it and leave a review in the comment section below!
Yellow Curry Thai Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 a large onion, diced or thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp oil or spray
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 1/2 tsp curry powder
- 1 tbsp minced ginger, or 1 tsp powdered
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cup protein of choice, such as cubed tofu or chickpeas
- 1 1/2 cup small broccoli florets
- 1/2 bell pepper, thinly sliced
- optional 1/2 cup baby corn
- 13.5 oz coconut cream or milk, or cashew cream for coconut-free
- 1 tbsp sweetener of choice
- 1 tsp lime juice
- optional garnishes, such as fresh basil, raw bell pepper, sliced cashews, etc.
Instructions
- In a large pot or pan, sauté the onion in oil or spray over medium heat—stirring only occasionally—until it begins to brown. Stir in the next four ingredients, then stir in the protein, broccoli, bell pepper, corn, coconut milk, and sweetener. (I’ve only tried the recipe with full-fat canned coconut milk or cream, so sub lite or cartoned coconut/nondairy milk at your own risk.) Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat. Once boiling, remove the lid and check for doneness. If broccoli is not yet soft, continue to cook until desired broccoli softness is reached. Remove from heat, stir in lime, and garnish as desired. Leftover sauce will thicken considerably in the fridge because coconut milk thickens when chilled, so just reheat and then add a little extra milk if needed to thin it out again.Instant Pot Version: In saute mode, cook the onions and oil about a minute, or until onion starts to brown. Stir in the next four ingredients, then stir in the protein, broccoli, bell pepper, corn, coconut milk, and sweetener. Close and seal, then cook on manual for 3 minutes. Do a natural pressure release. Stir in lime, and garnish. Thanks to reader Hannah for creating this version and leaving a comment to let us know how to make the recipe in an instant pot!View Nutrition Facts
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Made this recipe in my Instant Pot tonight an it is deliciously addictive!
Will definitely make it again 🙂
Thank You !
Nice. I will add in a few slices of chilli padi in to up the spice game.
Thanks for sharing!
I modified recipe, because of our supermarkets, and surprisingly I didn’t ruined it! Sooo tasty!
I put there white beans, as protein, cauliflower instead of broccoli, cartoned coconut cream and water, add brown rice noodles, also instead of baby corn I used fresh corn. It’s sooo goood! Thank you so much!
This was the most amazing recipe!! First, Katie, I tried twice to give you 5 stars…but it registered .5 stars. I sincerely hope you can fix that (my deepest apologies).
I have been a Plant Paradox vegan for 6 months (lost 30 lbs…yay!), but struggle with delicious recipes. I am so glad that I found yours…finally…a wonderful and easy dish! I left out the protein, bell pepper, and corn, but doubled the onion and broccoli. Also, I added blanched, toasted almond slivers from Trader Joe’s, which added a bit of additional sweetness. I also added 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper.
By the way, I had to fight off my husband for a bowl of this curry, as I want to take the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I had to promise him that I’ll make extra for him next time.
Aw thank you so much for making it! 🙂
What kind of sweetener do you recommend?
Maple syrup or sugar both work!
I love your site, your book and your recipes; this one is very good! Have you considered adding the name of your recipe and/or the name of your site to all your recipe photos (your photos that have this are so easy to find amongst my saved recipes in Pinterest). Thank you for sharing your recipes.
Hi! Thank you so much for making the recipe :). Katie usually puts watermarks on the photos, at least with the most recent posts. Is that what you mean?
Jason (media relations)
This post sound very nice.
I’m late to this party, but glad I got here! I swapped peapods for the broccoli, and stirred in aji amarillo for mellow heat (rather than the easy but sharper choice of gochujang), and it’s MOUTHWATERING good. Plan to do the instant-pot version next time…