Thai-Inspired Chicken & Rice Noodle Soup
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Cozy, comforting, and fragrant, this flavor-packed Thai chicken noodle soup will warm you right up.
This spicy, fragrant, slurpy noodle soup, inspired by some of my favorite Thai restaurant dishes, is like sunshine on a dreary day. What’s more, it’s made with rotisserie chicken and Thai pantry staples available in most supermarkets—such as green curry paste, fish sauce, coconut milk, and fresh ginger—so it’s almost instant gratification.
Whether I’m feeling worn down or just in need of a little comfort, there is nothing like a bowl of chicken noodle soup, and this is one of my favorite renditions. Be sure to keep the rice noodles separate from the soup until ready to serve. If you put them in the broth before serving, they will continue to cook and become too soft.
Table of Contents
“A wonderful melding of flavors, and it tastes truly authentic as Thai cuisine…My wife, a former restaurant reviewer, used words like ‘amazing’ and ‘delicious,’ so I knew I had a real winner.”
What You’ll Need To Make Chicken & Rice Noodle Soup
You’ll notice that the recipe calls for Thai green curry paste, an excellent substitute for hard-to-find Asian ingredients, like lemongrass and galangal. You can find it, along with the other Asian pantry staples, in the Asian section of most large supermarkets. Along with Thai red curry paste, green curry paste is a wonderfully versatile ingredient; I use it to make many Thai-style recipes, such as Thai shrimp curry and red chicken curry, butternut squash soup with coconut milk, and curry chicken skewers with coconut-peanut sauce.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by heating the oil in a medium soup pot. Add the shallots and ginger and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Next, add the green curry paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute more.
Add the chicken broth, coconut milk, fish sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, and turmeric; bring to a gentle simmer. Continue simmering for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the rice noodles by dropping them in boiling water.
Let sit for a few minutes to soften.
Then drain.
When ready to serve, divide the noodles and chicken into serving bowls.
Ladle the broth over top and sprinkle with cilantro and scallions. Serve with Sriracha sauce and lime wedges.
“Thank you for an excellent recipe. This is one of those great under 30 minute dinners when I’m in a pinch but want a satisfying restaurant-quality soup without going out.”
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Thai-Inspired Chicken & Rice Noodle Soup
Cozy, comforting, and fragrant, this flavor-packed Thai chicken noodle soup will warm you right up.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- ½ cup thinly sliced shallots, from 1-2 large shallots
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger, from a 1-inch knob (see note)
- 2 tablespoons Thai green curry paste
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 (13.5 oz) can unsweetened coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 4 packed teaspoons dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, from 1 lime
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
For Serving
- 4 oz thin rice noodles
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken, from a rotisserie chicken
- Handful chopped fresh cilantro
- 3 scallions, light and dark green parts, thinly sliced
- Sriracha sauce
- Lime wedges
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a medium soup pot over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and ginger and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute more. Add the chicken broth, coconut milk, fish sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, and turmeric; bring to a gentle simmer. Continue simmering, uncovered, for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook the rice noodles according to the package instructions.
- When ready to serve, taste the soup and adjust the seasoning, if necessary. Gently reheat the noodles in the microwave, if necessary. Divide the noodles and chicken into serving bowls. Ladle the broth over top and sprinkle with cilantro and scallions. Serve with Sriracha sauce and lime wedges.
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
- Note: As the soup sits on the stove, some of the fat may rise to the surface; skim it, if necessary.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 530
- Fat: 31 g
- Saturated fat: 20 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Sugar: 7 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 28 g
- Sodium: 942 mg
- Cholesterol: 53 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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What can be used instead of the Coconut Milk?
Hi Gwynne, You could try just omitting the coconut milk, but you might start off with a half as much curry paste, fish sauce, and lime juice – then add more to taste. I just worry those flavors might be a little too strong without the richness of the coconut milk to balance them out. Hope that helps!
When we first made this recipe, I loved it but my husband said it needed more seasoning. HOWEVER, after a few more bites, he said he changed his mind and it was great as-is. Now, we crave it and make it all the time. We do have to use red curry paste, since we can never find green curry paste at the store. We usually make more noodles, too, as we like a high noodle-to-broth ratio. Overall, yummy and easy!
Love this recipe! The combination of flavors is wonderful. My husband commented that we should put it in our regular rotation. Only change I’ll make for next time is to slightly reduce the fish sauce, as it was a little strong for my taste. Overall, a winner!
this was fabulous. Husband and even 11 year old daughter loved it too! Very flavorful
I have really been enjoying Thai soups and can totally appreciate Jenn’s tip on the green curry paste as a substitute for lemongrass, I have such a hard time getting my hands on it, which many times keeps me from making the dish at all! I love your tips Jenn!!
So I have made this a few times and played around with it a bit: love the green curry paste! I added mushrooms and bok choy to my soup (to amp up the vegetables), I use my own bone broth (always for my soups!) and the second time, I used shirataki pasta, which is a zero calorie, gluten free noodle. Turned out great, fewer calories, always a win!
This is one of my favorite recipes! It is a very simple recipe packed with flavor and takes little time so you can prepare a delicious meal even when you have a busy evening. Bonus: using a rotisserie chicken so I don’t have to cook any meat. My husband has this in his top 5 and we love the leftovers. Thanks Jenn!
Fantastic recipe! This has become a staple in our home. The first time I made it I followed the recipe exactly and it was amazing. The next time I decided to add garlic, broccoli, carrot, potatoes, and again it was amazing. It’s so fast and delicious, and it saves well.
This was delicious! I’d roasted a chicken the day before and used all the juices in the soup. Great body and flavor, with some nice heat from the Sriracha.
I was thinking of trying it with red curry paste. Would you tweak any ingredients to do so? Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it, Allison. Red curry paste should work – no tweaks needed.
OMG!!!! This is absolutely AMAZING!! I cooked some mushrooms, bok choy and zucchini to add some veggies but this broth should be tripled it is so good.
This soup was the perfect blend of Thai flavors and so easy to make…I’ll be fixing this regularly! Thanks for another success story on my attempt to be creative.