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This Simple Thai Yellow Chicken Curry with Spicy Garlic Butter is full of Thai flavors and so quick to make. Made with flavorful Thai red curry paste, yellow curry powder, lemongrass, and creamy coconut milk. The chicken is simmered in the sauce with potatoes and then served with spicy garlic honey butter. A side of rice soaks up all that yummy curry sauce, so delicious.
I feel like a broken record here, but yet again, this Thai yellow curry recipe was inspired by Creighton. He’s obviously been spending much more time here in Colorado this year. It’s not that he loves the snowy climate, it’s honestly more that he just really loves being around family. I think that all of his years of being in Cleveland with no one around really helped him realize how much he loves being with the family, and more importantly these days, little Oslo.
So with Creighton here I’ve been tending to make more recipes with him in mind. I love to cook for people, so inspiration is welcomed.
When it comes to curry, Creighton loves any kind, whether it’s Indian or Thai. He requests it weekly. And while I’ve perfected his favorite butter chicken, I haven’t done much with Thai-inspired curries.
Most yellow curry is made with a Thai yellow curry paste, which you can make at home. However, lack of time and ingredients lead me to improvise a little, using a mix of Thai red curry paste and then yellow curry powder.
This ended up taking less than 30 minutes to throw together, and it was so good.
The process is simple
What I love about this dish is just how easily it comes together, nothing fancy at all. Cook the potatoes, then add in the chicken thighs and a mix of Thai red curry paste and yellow curry powder. I love to add lemongrass as well, which adds a really bright pop of freshness.
Cook the spices without any liquid for a few minutes to really activate their flavor. Then stir in the coconut milk and a small splash of fish sauce. Allow this to simmer.
On to the spicy honey butter
While the chicken is simmering in the curry sauce, make the spicy honey butter. When I made this the first time around, I felt like it was good. But, of course, I wanted it to be really great.
I thought about the recent curry I had made with salmon. We all loved the spicy butter so much, so I wanted to add that element to this curry. I also decided to add a touch of honey for a sweet and spicy element.
It ended up being just what the dish needed to make it really delicious!
For serving, keep it simple, steamed basmati rice or jasmine rice and garnish with lots of cilantro, and a side of limes.
This dish is definitely becoming a quick, weeknight family favorite. Creighton loved this, and the rest of the family enjoyed it too. Even my dad, who is not really a curry fan, thought the sauce was delicious.
Looking for other curries?
Coconut Curry Salmon with Garlic Butter
Creamy Coconut Chicken Meatball and Noodle Curry
Sweet Potato Lentil Curry with Crispy Sesame Chickpeas
Lastly, if you make this Simple Thai Yellow Chicken Curry with Spicy Garlic Butter 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!
Simple Thai Yellow Chicken Curry with Spicy Garlic Butter
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 577 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3/4 pound baby potatoes, cubed
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cubed
- 2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
- 2 tablespoons yellow curry powder
- 1 tablespoon lemongrass paste
- 2 cups canned full-fat coconut milk
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce or tamari
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- juice and zest of 1 lime
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
- chili flakes
- 2 teaspoons honey
Instructions
- 1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and potatoes. Cook 10 minutes, until soft. Add the chicken, curry paste, curry powder, lemongrass paste, and season with salt. Toss to coat the chicken, then cook 3 minutes. 2. Pour in the coconut milk and 1/3 cup water. Season with salt. Cover and cook 5-10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce thickened.3. Meanwhile, melt together the butter and garlic. Cook until the butter is browning. Stir in the chili flakes and honey. 4. Remove the curry from the heat. Stir in the fish sauce, cilantro, and lime zest + juice. Serve the chicken and sauce over rice. Top with spicy honey butter.
This post was originally published on February 24, 2022
Very good!
Hi Karen,
Awesome!! I am thrilled that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Have a great week:) xx
Delicious!! It’s not too often I find a recipe the whole family enjoys, but this one hit the spot. I will preface this by saying that I usually do not follow recipes, but rather use them for ideas or ingredient lists. The pictures of this dish looked so good that I decided to try to follow this recipe and I got pretty close! First, I doubled the recipe because I have a big family and we like leftovers. Well, I doubled everything except for the coconut milk (I used the 2 cans called for and it was plenty). And even after doubling, I upped the yellow curry powder because the color of my sauce was a bit orange compared to the picture. I didn’t have any fish sauce and was going to substitute Tamari, but forgot completely when I got to that step. I simmered my chicken and potatoes in the curry coconut sauce for about an hour because I had an errand to run and it just worked for me. When I got back home I added the lime and cilantro, and then I made the spicy honey garlic butter. Do Not Skip The Spicy Honey Garlic Butter! I didn’t have red pepper flakes so I substituted cayenne pepper… It was amazing and the perfect topper to this already delicious dish. Thank you for this recipe. I know I will use it often. Eventually I may even get my prep and cook times down, closer to the ones listed.
Hey Sarah,
Awesome!! I am thrilled that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you. Have a great week:) xx
We made this for dinner tonight. You are right- the Chilli garlic butter is a game changer. Even our 6 year old loved it.. thank you…
Hey Tina,
Happy Sunday!! I love to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xxT
I made this for dinner tonight and it was enjoyed by all. Everything was pretty easy to find and it comes together very quickly once you’re done prepping and start cooking. I will definitely make this again and can see using the butter sauce in other dishes.
Hey Kyle,
Happy Sunday!! I love to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xxT
Made this for dinner tonight. OMG, it’s so delicious. The flavor profiles are bursting. Restaurant quality.
Hey Elaine,
Happy Sunday!! I love to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xxT
Delish. I used broccoli, baby carrots and snow peas instead of potatoes since I served it w/ coconut cilantro rice, using the leftover coconut milk to cook the rice. Those of you that can’t find lemongrass look in the produce section for Gourmet Garden tubes. They have lemongrass, ginger, chunky garlic & other flavors. They keep in fridge for mths so great to have on hand.
Hey Diane,
Happy Sunday!! I love to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xxT
Is yellow curry powder the same as Thai yellow curry powder? Thanks!
Hey there,
I only know of yellow curry powder, it is the way the curry is made and the other ingredients used that make it Thai or not. Please let me know you have any other questions! xTieghan
Oh my stars! I have to admit, I wasn’t sure about the melding of these flavors. But I had all of the ingredients so I decided to go for it. YUM-MO! The spicy honey butter is ridiculous! Adds just a touch of sweet, but with the browned butter, chili flakes and garlic, it is anything but cloying. This is a keeper.
Hey Melinda,
Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best weekend:) xT
We made this wonderful recipe this evening for dinner. The flavours were amazing. The combination of Thai red curry paste with curry powder and coconut milk so good. We used sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes. The spicy garlic butter gave the dish extra zing. We will make again. Always follow your recipes. We are making this dish for our daughter and husband this weekend.
Hey Linda,
Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best weekend:) xT
Hi. Could you please advise the amount of chili flakes used? I’ve never cooked with them before. Thanks!
Hi Leigh,
Just a pinch or more depending on how much spice you like:) I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Just started using your recipes and I think I love you!
I have a question – my son is allergic to coconut milk. Any idea for a good substitution in the recipes where you use it? Heavy cream or whole milk? Just wondering if you’ve tried anything as a sub. Thanks!
Hey Amy,
Thank you so much for your kind message! In most of my recipes, you can really use any milk that you enjoy! Please let me know if you have any other questions:) xTieghan
Deffo going to try this. Is it just a “normal” curry powder you use with the paste. Here in England I can’t see a yellow curry powder particularly, just the usual hot, medium etc. Though I can get a yellow Thai paste. Thanks
Why fish oil? That kinda turns me off a bit.
Fish oil is common in so many Asian and Thai dishes. It might seem strange or even smell a little strange, but it gives an incredible flavor to the dish. Trust.
Not oil, fish sauce…it is fermented fish, a bit like a strong soy sauce.
Hi Kathy,
The fish sauce adds an umami flavor, it’s pretty great! Let me know if you give the recipe a try:) xTieghan
Hey Gill,
Here is the link for what I used:
http://thrv.me/JHrBpk
Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan,
Love your recipes! I have the same question as Gill and the link just takes you to Thrive’s spices, nothing that says yellow curry. I can find Thai yellow curry paste or just regular curry powder in the spice section which is more of an Indian curry powder. Your help would be appreciated as it sounds delicious. Thanks.
I think you can likely substitute whatever curry powder or paste you have and add it with the red Thai curry paste…..just check the heat level of your choice. I have a curry paste from Patak’s, just called Mild Curry Paste, that I use most regularly with good success. Curry powders and pastes are varied enough that one could do a study just on those ingredients! I’m sure it will by yummy still!
Hi Linda,
I like to use Simply Organic yellow curry powder. I hope this helps! xTieghan
This is a lot of Flavor!! I liked however next time I will only use red curry as it is my preference. The lime zest is what I love! Thanks for sharing
Hey Devan,
Happy Friday!! Thanks a bunch for giving this recipe a go, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
Tieghan!! This dish was absolutely delicious (no surprise if you are a HBH foodie)! I saw this recipe come up this AM and couldn’t wait to make this for tonight’s dinner. I omitted the potatoes as I served it over rice. We (NH) are expecting a big snowstorm tomorrow and After much snow shoveling, I will serve again, with hearty potatoes and one of your amazing desserts.
Oh… and I give this curry 5 stars : )
Thanks again Susan!!
Hey Susan,
Happy Friday!! Thanks a bunch for giving this recipe a go, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
I made this curry for dinner tonight and it was amazing! I’ve made most of HBH’s curries and this one might be my favorite. So easy and incredibly flavorful!
Hi Katie,
Happy Friday!! Thanks a bunch for giving this recipe a go, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan