Just 6 days until my book Fuss-Free Vegan is released! I can't even control my excitement right now. Last night, I had a smashing good time at my book launch party... well at least I assume I will have a smashing good time, as I'm actually writing this post a few days before the party. Sam was a wee bit concerned that she might still be in bed the morning this post would go out, so she scheduled the recipe to get sent out all by itself. I am so smart, S-M-R-T!
I will tell you all about the launch party in Sunday's post, but today I'm throwing Thai Red Curry Noodle Soup at you.
...Well, no I'm not throwing this soup at you, that would be a bad idea and could result in injury and lawsuit. How about instead I share some rainbow coloured pictures and drool-worthy flavour descriptions. Agreed? Good.
Slightly spicy coconut red curry broth, with slurpable thin rice noodles and bok choy, topped with crunchy sweet yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced red onion, fresh cilantro, roasted peanuts, spicy Thai red chili (if you are into that kinda thing), roasted peanuts, and a squeeze of lime. Yes, this soup tastes every bit as good as it looks. But it gets even better...
... this gorgeous soup takes less than 30 minutes to make and is a one pot meal! Yeah I know, I bet you didn't see that coming. It looks and tastes so fancy for being so easy to whip up.
The secret is using Thai red curry paste. This curry paste which can be found in almost any grocery store. It's so packed full of flavour, that it does most of the work for you. You can play around with the toppings if you like, but I highly recommend always opting for a generous squirt of fresh lime, and the roasted salted peanuts (or cashews). They really add that last little flourish that makes you go back for seconds. Soup's on!
To make Thai Red Curry Noodle Soup: heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. When hot add the onion, garlic and ginger. Sauté until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the curry paste, and continue to stir and cook for another 30 seconds until the curry is fragrant.
Pour in the vegetable broth and add the bok choy. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 - 3 minutes until the bok choy starts to wilt.
Like so.
Add the rice noodles and cook another 2 - 3 minutes until the noodles are tender. Lastly, stir in the coconut milk.
You may find that the noodles absorb too much of the broth, and if so, feel free to add water to the soup to thin as needed.
Divide the soup among bowls, and add the toppings to taste. I like to arrange my toppings in around the bowl because it works so wonderfully for food photography, but if looks don't matter, you can always just dump them all on top. You're gonna need a napkin for this one!
Thai Red Curry Noodle Soup
Ingredients
For the soup:
- 1 tablespoon light oil (such as peanut, canola, or vegetable)
- ½ yellow onion
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 inch piece fresh ginger, minced
- 3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste (make sure it's vegan)
- 8 cups vegetable broth (2 litres)
- 1 454g package baby bok choy (about 5 cups), roughly chopped
- 225g rice vermicelli noodles (½ of a 454g package)
- 1 cup full-fat coconut milk (the kind in a can)
For the toppings:
- 1 yellow bell pepper (or other colour pepper), thinly sliced
- 1 handful cilantro, roughly chopped
- ½ cup roasted salted peanuts
- ¼ red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
- 1 red Thai chili pepper (or other hot pepper), thinly sliced (optional)
- soy sauce, to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. When hot add the onion, garlic and ginger. Sauté until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the curry paste, and continue to stir and cook for another 30 seconds until the curry is fragrant.
- Pour in the vegetable broth and add the bok choy. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 – 3 minutes until the bok choy starts to wilt. Add the rice noodles and cook another 2 – 3 minutes until the noodles are tender. Lastly, stir in the coconut milk.
- Divide the soup among bowls, and add the toppings to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Bon appetegan!
Sam.
Sophie says
Love this and make it often.
To me the proportions are just right, so I don't see how some people say it lacks flavour and am guessing it's due to differences in curry pastes. Or personal taste, who knows. It gets the thumbs up from me anyways.
Barb says
Sam, made this last night and like some other readers, thought it was a little bland. I just KNEW that the base of it was good, so I ended up tripling the red curry, garlic and ginger, added a splash of lime juice, and then some maple syrup to round it out. O.M.G. My carnivore husband couldn't get enough of it and asked me to make it again next week. This one will for sure be on our regular rotation.
Gwen says
Looks pretty but not a great recipe. We made this for dinner but also found it disappointing due to lacking in flavor. We ended up adding every appropriate condiment we could find in our fridge to bring it to life.
steph curry says
Anything with coconut milk in it, I'm gonna love, and this was no exception. I"ve been cooking vegan for about 7 months now and so far this noodle bowl has been the most delicious dish so far. Okay, so I added a little more coconut milk to it....
Sam Turnbull says
Haha! That's awesome. I too am obsessed with coconut milk! So happy you enjoyed it so much!
Kristen says
Hi Sam. I've made quite a few recipes from your website and they have all been great! This one seems to lack flavor and I ended up having to throw out the whole pot 🙁 I followed the recipe 100% and it came out very bland and neither my husband nor myself were a fan. It definitely needed both sweetness and saltiness so we added some soy sauce and Sriracha to our bowls but it just wasn't quite right. I'll probably stick to the Thai restaurants for this dish.
Sam Turnbull says
Oh no, sorry to hear that 🙁 I love this soup and enjoy it often. Different brands of Thai red curry paste can vary greatly in flavour. My go-to is Thai Kitchen brand. If that wasn't the problem for you then sorry you didn't enjoy the recipe.
Vicky says
It's a cold day in Nebraska. I tried this tonight and my husband and I both loved it! So comforting. I switched out spinach for bok choy and sprinkled yellow pepper, peanuts, and cilantro on top. This is one I'll definitely make again!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay! So happy you and your husband loved the soup, Vicky 🙂
Keri says
Made this yesterday.... added more veggies and used spaghetti squash for the noodles! It was fantastic!
Thanks for the delicious recipe!
(I forwarded/posted the recipe from your site to Facebook to share this great recipe with friends....it said that it was coming from social warfare..... kind of freaked me out so I deleted. )
Sam Turnbull says
Yay! So happy you enjoyed it, Keri!! Haha, social warfare is the plugin I use to make my content easily shareable on social media... that said it sounds like there must have been a bit of a glitch, as it should just come from my site. Weird!
keri says
thanks Sam.... I tried uploading it twice and it showed that way. Now that I know it's legit and not some freaky viral thing.... I'll upload it again.... this recipe is Awesome!
Sam Turnbull says
Soo weird!! There must be a bit of a glitch, but it is safe to share 🙂
Gill says
OMG - just discovered (thanks to a tip-off from a friend, that I can adjust the recipe for serving-sizes! Brilliant! That's just terrific. I have a Thai Spiced Soup on my menu today.
Sam Turnbull says
Hahaha yes you can! Not all of my recipes have this feature yet but I am working on going through and fixing them so they all will eventually. Enjoy!
Rick Shauntz says
I made it this morning and it is good!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!!!
Bethery says
Made this tonight. It's perfect on a chilly evening. Yum!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay! So happy you enjoyed it, Bethery 😀
Trish says
This is so up my alley! My local thai restaurant makes a great Thai red curry soup but a few years back they told me it wasn’t vegan. I just love Thai food. Thanks for the recipe! Will be making this over the weekend.
Sam Turnbull says
Awesome! Yes, some red curry pastes contain fish, so just check the label on the one you purchase Thai Kitchen brand is what I use and it's good to go. I hope you love it!
Ilana says
Wish I had known that red curry paste contains fish! I live in a small town and was so excited to see they had red curry paste. I was in the middle of making this dish when my husband asked how the paste tasted, I said "here, have a taste." He said, "Is there fish in that?" I said I don't think so," but then I looked at the ingredients and there was shrimp! Yuk! Sure ruined our dinner.
Sam Turnbull says
Oh no! The brand I use is Thai Kitchen which is vegan, but I made a note on the recipe for people to check. Sorry, that happened to you!