Easy Thai Shrimp Curry
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In this quick Thai-style shrimp curry, plump shrimp are simmered in a coconut sauce infused with aromatics and green curry paste.
This Thai-style shrimp curry is made by simmering plump shrimp in a fragrant coconut curry sauce infused with aromatics and fresh herbs. It’s quick and easy to make. In fact, if you keep shrimp in the freezer and a few Thai staples – like canned coconut milk, green curry paste, and fish sauce – in the pantry, you’re never more than 25 minutes away from this satisfying meal.
There’s plenty of sauce if you’d like to add some vegetables to round out the meal; carrots, bell peppers or snap peas would all be welcome additions (cook them separately and add them at the end). Serve the curry with jasmine rice for soaking up the plentiful sauce, and be sure to put the rice on first so that everything is ready at the same time.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need to Make Shrimp Curry
- Onion, Scallions and Garlic: These aromatics form the flavor foundation for the sauce.
- Thai Green Curry Paste: This common Thai ingredient is made from a blend of lemongrass, galangal (a cousin of ginger), cumin, coriander root, Kaffir lime, and hot green chilies to name just a few. I use the Thai Kitchen brand. Note that different brands will have different levels of heat, so you may need more or less depending on the kind you use.
- Coconut Milk: A staple in many curry dishes, it’s essential to opt for full-fat coconut milk to achieve that rich texture and taste. However, be aware that canned coconut milk’s consistency can differ depending on the brand. I’ve consistently had great results with the Thai Kitchen brand. Don’t worry if the coconut milk looks solidified or separated when you open the can; it can be added to the recipe “broken” and then whisked back together into a creamy emulsion.
- Fish Sauce: This dark, pungent liquid used in Southeast Asian cooking doesn’t have a “fishy” taste, but rather a salty, savory flavor. If possible, buy a brand imported from Thailand or Vietnam, and don’t worry about buying a large bottleit keeps forever.
- Lime Juice: Brightens up the sauce with citrusy freshness.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by cooking the onions until soft, about 3 minutes.
Add the scallions, garlic and green curry paste.
Cook a few minutes more.
Add the coconut milk, water, fish sauce and brown sugar, and bring to a gentle boil.
Add the shrimp.
Cook until the shrimp are pink and just cooked through, then stir in the lime juice and sprinkle with the fresh chopped cilantro.
Spoon into shallow bowls and serve with jasmine rice and lime wedges.
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Thai Shrimp Curry
In this quick Thai-style shrimp curry, plump shrimp are simmered in a coconut sauce infused with aromatics and green curry paste.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
- ⅓ cup thinly sliced scallions, white and green parts, from 4-5 scallions
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2½ tablespoons Thai green curry paste
- 1 (14-ounce) can coconut milk
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon dark or light brown sugar
- 2 pounds large, extra large (26-30 per lb) or jumbo (21-25 per lb) shrimp, peeled and deveined (see note), thawed if frozen
- Juice of 1 lime (about 2 tablespoons), plus more lime wedges for serving
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro, Thai basil, or Italian basil (or a combination)
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 3 minutes. If the onions start to brown, reduce the heat to medium. Add the scallions, garlic, and green curry paste, and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes more. Add the coconut milk, water, fish sauce, and sugar and bring to a gentle boil. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring frequently, until the shrimp are pink and just cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and sprinkle with the cilantro (or basil). Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary, and serve with jasmine rice.
- Note: For the shrimp, I recommend buying frozen shrimp labeled “shell split and deveined.” Most shrimp are cleaned and flash frozen shortly after being caught, so the “fresh” shrimp you see in the seafood case at the supermarket are typically thawed frozen shrimp. Who knows how long they've been sitting there, so you’re better off buying frozen shrimp and defrosting it yourself. Come dinnertime, all you have to do is run the shrimp under water to defrost, and then peel.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 299
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated fat: 13 g
- Carbohydrates: 10 g
- Sugar: 3 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 23 g
- Sodium: 1372 mg
- Cholesterol: 191 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.
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Made this again last night and, again, it was a HIT! My hubby and 2 daughters devoured their servings and wondered why I didn’t make more 🙂
Just some minor mods because of what I had on hand…swapped out red curry paste for green, and added red & orange bell peppers and thinly sliced carrots (peeled w/ potato peeler). I timed myself this time, and indeed everything was done in under 25 min. Thanks again!
Hi there, recipe looks delicious although I haven’t tried yet. If I cook on a Sunday is it possible to freeze and eat later in the week? Or even a few weeks later?
I don’t recommend freezing this dish, Sally-ann — sorry!
We LOVE this recipe and made just a small tweak so that we CAN freeze it. Just leave out the shrimp, freezing just the sauce. Then it’s simple to thaw the sauce and cook the shrimp fresh — or we “cheat” and buy pre-cooked frozen shrimp. We thaw the sauce and the shrimp, then heat up the sauce in a saucepan and throw the shrimp into the sauce just long enough to warm up the shrimp. One might argue that this version does not allow the shrimp to absorb any flavor, but when the shrimp is COVERED in delicious sauce, does the shrimp itself really need to have absorbed anything? : )
So, to recap, our method: 1) make triple batch of sauce. 2) mix third of sauce with shrimp to eat that night. 3) freeze two bags of sauce and buy two bags/portions of frozen shrimp. 4) have two more delicious dinners with no measuring/chopping/etc.
THANK YOU!!
I do the same with a creamy cajun recipe which has way too many fresh ingredients to make for only a serving or two.
I make a batch for 20 servings, freeze in bags and then I simmer with shrimp, salmon, sausage, whatever. In that recipe I use red bell pepper and portabella mushrooms and they freeze just fine.
Will do the same with this recipe. Thanks for the idea!
Can even have cooked rice frozen in bags. Totally awesome dinner in less than 10 minutes and zero clean up 🙂
I felt like this was a dish from an excellent restaurant!!! So freakin’ good!!! I used sesame oil, but followed everything else, and it was fabulous! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes 🙂
Very good. i added a whole bag of frozen Asian style vegetables. All other ingredients were perfect. Thanks again, love your recipes.
Amazing!!! SIMPLY AMAZING!!!!! This is the second recipe I’ve used in one week. I had to write a review. The recipes are so easy to follow and ingredients can be found in ANY supermarket. My son and husband are eating their second helping of Thai Curry Shrimp as I type this review. Thank you so much for sharing your gift Jen. Thank you for the step by step pictures so I know I’m following your instructions correctly.
I’m grateful for your children for without them, you would still be a chef in a 5star restaurant. Now we have the chef in our home.
This recipe was very simple to make! I added about a tbsp of rice wine vinegar and substituted white sugar because that’s all I had on hand. Not sure if it was my brand of fish sauce I used, but 2 tbsp was a bit overpowering. Next time I’ll add the fish sauce a teaspoon at a time for taste.
Great recipe; really easy with great flavors. I find fish sauce a little strong so only 1 Tbsp for us, otherwise followed the recipe to a T.
This is my go-to recipe for Thai Shrimp Curry. Sometimes I up the vegetables by adding a bag of those steam-in-the-bag stir fry vegetables just before serving. I personally omit the sugar… still delicious.
Could I add some fresh ginger to this recipe?
Hi Barbara Jean, the Thai green curry paste already contains ginger, so I don’t really think it’s necessary; that said, if you want to add a little, feel free.
Excellent. I love that this has easy to find ingredients, too. We will be making this again. Works well with shrimp, of course, also works well with a seafood mix or with chicken.