I’m not sure if this is a legit Thai dish. I was too scared to tell my Thai mother that I potentially ruined yellow curry. But guys. It tasted so. good. And it was so. easy.
You don’t make the curry paste from scratch. I use Maesri brand. You can find it at basically any Asian grocery store. I once made curry paste from scratch and my mom yelled at me. She said even people in Thailand don’t make curry paste from scratch. (Spoiler alert: curry paste made from scratch tastes amazing but yes it’s a huge pain to make.)
I’d like to think that’s similar to how people in the United States use tomato sauce from a jar. There are some pretty good store bought tomato sauces out there. I mean of course it has the potential to taste better from scratch but why bother if you’re short on time. That’s how I imagine Thai people are with curry paste.
Recipe Variations
You can simmer tofu in the broth instead of chicken to make it vegetarian. Feel free to add any vegetables you like and prepare them using your favorite method. I prefer to simply blanch my vegetables for noodle soup.
For the noodles, I was trying to use up leftovers so I used Lanzhou noodles. They are so deliciously chewy. You can also use Hong Kong style egg noodles.
A Note on the Chicken
I like keeping my chicken whole after braising and eating it right off the bone. Yes your fingers will get dirty. Another option is to shred the chicken and return it to the pot. Either way works. That’s what I did in the picture above (and why you can’t see the chicken =( ).
I note to cook the chicken to 185 F. You may think this causes the chicken to be dry and overcooked but NO. It makes it INCREDIBLE. At 165 F, the FDA safe temperature to eat chicken, it’s still red and kind of tough. I learned the higher temp trick from this guy.
Saved my life. Because of him, my chicken tastes amazing.
Yellow Curry Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- 4 chicken drumsticks
- kosher salt and pepper
- 1 onion, sliced
- 2 bell peppers, sliced
- 1 tablespoon ginger, minced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 green onions, white and green parts separated
- 1 can Maesri yellow curry
- 1 quart (4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 can coconut milk
- Assorted vegetables, bok choy, Chinese spinach, etc.
- 1 pound noodles*
Instructions
- Lightly coat the chicken in salt and pepper. In a dutch oven or large stock pot, heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil on medium heat. Sear the chicken drumsticks until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Remove and set aside.
- Add 2 tablespoons oil. Add the onions and peppers and saute until slightly softened, about 4 minutes.
- Lower heat to medium. Add the ginger, garlic, and white part of green onions and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the can of curry. Saute for 1 min. Add coconut milk and vegetable broth. Stir to combine. Add the chicken to the pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 20-30 minutes or until chicken temperature is 185°F*.
- When chicken is done, you can either eat the chicken whole with the curry soup or shred the chicken and return it back to the pot.
- Keeping the broth warm on the stove, prepare the vegetables and noodles. Blanch the vegetables or prepare them however you'd like. Boil the noodles according to the package directions. Combine noodles, vegetables, curry broth, and chicken. Garnish with the green parts of the green onion.