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Weeknight Thai Chicken Meatball Khao Soi. This northern Thai inspired noodle soup is the simplest weeknight dinner. Made with flavorful Thai curry paste, coconut milk, and plenty of fresh herbs and lime juice. Toss in seared gingery chicken meatballs and plenty of delicious egg noodles, it’s hard to beat the easy Thai inspired soup. It’s the perfect any night of the week dinner that’s made in 30 minutes, hearty, cozy, and healthy too.
Say hello to my personal favorite recipe of the week. This soup is a combination of everything I love most. It’s colorful, hearty, full of so many vegetables, has crispy (flavorful) chicken meatballs, noodles, and truly the most delicious soup broth. If I wasn’t making a million other things every single week I would be making this soup on repeat. It’s one of my favorites…probably should have saved it for a possible future cookbook but I simply had to share.
Sooo, hopefully, that lets you know just how excited I am. I know this soup is different, but I beg you to try it.
The background + inspiration.
First, I want to share the background on Khao Soi, in case you’re unfamiliar with it. It’s a soup from Northern Thailand made with very specific Thai curry paste giving the soup its unique rich flavor. Additionally, it’s made with creamy coconut milk, which makes this more like a curry…but yet it’s still soup. Well actually, it’s somewhere in between the two!
After reading up on Khao Soi, I discovered there are actually a few variations throughout different parts of Thailand. Some parts of the country will use rice noodles, while others use egg noodles. However, the broth remains the same…curry paste and coconut milk. You can read up on the history here, if you’d like.
So the inspiration? Of course, it’s once again my brother, Brendan. He’s traveled to Thailand a few times now and each time he brings me curry paste and noodles. It’s like winning the lottery, I love him so much for it. Praying he and Lyn’s head back soon because my stash is currently gone.
Anyway, this is their favorite soup. I’ve made a couple versions of it now, one you can find in the Half Baked Harvest Super Simple Cookbook. But I think today’s version might just be my favorite…
My point is, I just love the meatballs in this version, they’re such a fun twist.
Here is how you make Thai Khao Soy.
Going to put this right out there before getting into details, this is not an authentic Khao Soi. This is just my take, it’s similar but different.
Moving along, aside from cooking the noodles, this soup is made entirely in one pot. The meatballs are the exact same mix that I used for my ginger sesame meatballs…ground chicken, green onions, garlic, and ginger. Roll this all together, then pan-fry the meatballs in a bit of olive oil to get them nice and crispy on the outside. Toss in some baby bok choy, or other greens of your liking, and sear them until they are crisp. At this point, you’ll remove everything from the pot so that the meatballs and greens don’t overcook or lose their crispness.
Next, you’ll want to sauté the Thai red curry paste for a minute or two before adding in the liquids. This will activate the flavors in the curry paste and give you a richer tasting broth. Now, just add in all the liquid, stir back in the meatballs and bok choy, and simmer everything together for a few minutes. You want the meatballs to cook fully through and the flavors in the soup to meld together.
While that’s happening, boil some egg noodles (or use rice noodles if you are gluten free). By the time the noodles are ready, the soup will be too!
Let’s talk about the toppings.
Because they are the best part! Well, maybe not the best part, but they contribute so much to this soup.
I am not shy with my toppings, I really like to layer them on. Use ingredients you love most, but here are my recommendations…plenty of fresh Thai basil, a generous handful of thinly sliced green onions, some very thinly sliced shallots (bonus points if you fry the shallots in oil first), lots of fresh-squeezed lime juice, and lastly – chili oil…lots and lots of chili oil.
For the chili oil, I simply make up a quick homemade batch, but you can easily use store-bought too. And if you can’t find any Thai basil, regular Italian basil works as well.
And that’s it, simple, so much flavor, quick, easy, extra color, and insanely good!
I really can’t begin to express just how good. If you loved my Thai ramen or my coconut milk braised chicken, I think you’ll also greatly enjoy this. Similar(ish) flavors, but very different dishes.
The broth, the crispy meatballs, the noodles, the toppings…everything all together. It is the BEST. Creamy, hinted with ginger and garlic, a touch spicy, a touch sweet, herby, salty, so perfect. Yeah, I think that pretty much sums this up. So how about a cozy bowl of Khao Soi tonight? You only need thirty minutes.
You can do it!
If you make this Weeknight Thai Chicken Meatball Khao Soi, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Weeknight Thai Chicken Meatball Khao Soi.
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 636 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 2 green onions, finely, chopped, plus more for serving
- 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
- 1 clove garlic, minced or grated
- black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 baby bok choy or 1 bunch kale, chopped
- 1/4 cup Thai red curry paste
- 2 (14-ounce) cans full-fat coconut milk
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce (or low sodium soy sauce)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 cup each fresh cilantro and Thai or regular basil, chopped, plus more for serving
- 8 ounces egg or rice noodles
- sliced limes and thinly sliced shallots, for serving
- chili oil, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Add the chicken, green onions, ginger, garlic, and a pinch of pepper to a bowl. Mix until just combined. Coat your hands with a bit of oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-20 meatballs).2. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons oil. When the oil shimmers, add the meatballs and sear until crisp, about 4-5 minutes, turning them 2-3 times. Toss in the bok choy and cook 2 minutes more, until just charred on the edges. Transfer everything to a plate.3. To the same pot, add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, and the curry paste. Cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk, chicken broth, fish sauce, and honey. Slide the meatballs and bok choy back into the soup. Simmer over medium heat until the meatballs are cooked through, 5-8 minutes. Stir in the herbs. 4. Meanwhile, cook noodles according to package directions.5. Divide the noodles between bowls and ladle the soup over. Top each bowl as desired with basil, green onions, shallots, lime juice, and chili oil.
This post was originally published on January 22, 2020
Just made this for dinner – absolutely delicious! Also got the sinuses running, which is nice as the weather gets cooler 😀
Yes! I am really glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
WOW YOU GUYS. Made this for dinner and everyone loved it- even my dad who says he hates coconut. (I didn’t tell him that it was a coconut milk based soup.) Used kale and didn’t have fish sauce so I subbed in half soy sauce and half rice vinegar. Seriously SO SO TASTY.
Wow yes!! I am so glad you all loved this recipe Olivia! Thank you! xTieghan
Pretty simple and easy to make and SUPER good!! Made with turkey meatballs and light coconut milk and still turned out great!
Thank you so much Lauren! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Somehow I am missing when the cilantro and basil fit in? As toppers or right into the soup. Thank you can I cannot wait to try this tomorrow!
Hi Valerie! Just as toppers! Add as much as you would like! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This was the first recipe I made of yours and I instantly became obsessed. The meatballs were outstanding, the sauce was loaded with flavor and had a velvety finish. Well done.
Thank you so much Melissa! xTieghan
Did you use all of the bok Choy or just the green ends?
Hi Jake! I used all of the bok choy, but you can use it either way! I hope you love this recipe! xTieghan
You are amazing! You are inspirational and it’s lovely to see all the recipes you create. Than you for the beautiful delicious distraction right now. Thank you.
Thank you Gail! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Amazing!!! So good and easy…we also subbed shrimp for the meatballs to save time and added some thai chili powder to spice it up to our level. My 2 year old LOVED the broth with the noodles so much she drank thd leftover broth straight from the bowl!
Thank you so much Jess! I am so glad it turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Made this recipe a second time and found its a little easier (although obviously takes longer) if you brown the meatballs in batches! Yum, love this recipe, thank you!
Hi Becc! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
I made this last night and it was excellent! The noodles definitely soaked up a lot of the sauce/broth so I think next time i’ll add more broth/milk/curry (or maybe just less noodles?). Either way, it was SO good and I can’t wait to have the leftovers.
I am so glad you loved this!! Thank yuo so much for trying it! xTieghan
Would this work well frozen?
Hi Zahra! Yes, this freezes wonderfully! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
Made it! Love it! I lived in northern Thailand briefly and it’s pretty close to khao soi in general. My 2 year old niece greatly approved of the meatballs. Notes: I made this during the coronavirus panic phase so the grocery store only had ground turkey. But all of the other ingredients were well stocked. I would add salt or something acidic to the meatballs while making them. And I had enough broth for leftovers with fresh noodles (meatballs were gone). I’d also recommend adding more veggies if you’d like!
Aw that is so amazing to hear! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe and I hope you are staying healthy! Thank you so much! xTieghan
This recipe was SO good! OMG. and so easy! Leftovers were even better because the flavor set in a little more. Thank you for sharing this with us!
Thank you Courtney! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
So good! Toppings definitely tie it together. Will make this again and again!
Thank you so much Linda! That is amazing to hear! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan, this recipe tasted amazing. I’m a meatball newbie, and my meatballs totally fell apart during searing. Do you think this is because I should’ve rolled them tightly (I did not)? Or maybe they were too big (I made 15)? I had to remove them to sear the kale bc they wouldn’t have held up for that either haha. Appreciate any tips bc we’d love to make it again! Thanks 🙂
Hi Lucy!! It is important to not turn the meatballs before they are ready, so if they are sticking to the pan, give them a bit more time to cook.
Also, What percent fat are you using for your meat? Is it super lean? I recommend using something with a little bit of fat to help the meatballs stay moist and hold together. If you are having trouble, you can also add 1 egg to the meatball mix. This will ensure they do not crumble. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan