Let me just say that this Panang Curry recipe could be my ultimate favorite kind of curry! It’s bursting with rich and creamy flavor from the curry paste and coconut milk and is made hearty with chicken, veggies and fresh basil.
Recently I shared a new Red Curry, Yellow Curry and Massaman curry recipe, but if I had it my way, I’d serve these dishes together on the same night alongside some homemade naan and roasted vegetables! I’ve also included options for vegan and vegetarian panang curry, because this recipe is easily adaptable to any dietary restrictions.
My affinity for Thai food recipes is no secret–especially ones you can make at home, that taste just as good as take-out! You all have come to LOVE my Homemade Pad Thai just as much as I do, and I have too many other favorite Thai recipes to count. I just love the hugely bold flavors and freshness that comes with dishes, including this one!
I think the thought of making homemade curry can sound intimidating but it’s actually one of the EASIEST meals to make! Let’s walk through it, step by step!
Quick and Easy Panang Curry (and overview)
1. Sauté vegetables. Heat oil over medium high heat in large non-stick skillet. Sauté onions for 2 minutes, then add bell peppers, garlic and ginger and sauté for 2 minutes more.
2. Add to make sauce: Add curry paste and peanut butter and sauté for 1 minute. Add 1 ½ cans of coconut milk. Whisk cornstarch into remaining ½ can coconut milk then add to the pan. Stir well.
3. Add chicken. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or just until chicken is no longer pink and sauce begins to thicken.
4. Final touches. Stir in sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, and basil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
5. Serve curry over hot cooked rice, zoodles or spaghetti squash, with a side for naan.
Panang Curry Paste:
Which type? You have the choice of buying this curry paste or making it homemade. Personally, I prefer to buy panang curry paste and I am partial to the Mae Ploy Brand. You can find it at your local Asian market, or on Amazon.
Spice level. The spiciness of this dish will largely depend on the type and amount of curry paste you use. I have found Mae Ploy to be a little spicier than other brands (2 tablespoons is medium spicy). That being said, I found when I used 1 tablespoon Mae Ploy Panang Curry paste it was lacking flavor for my taste.
If you want, you can always use less Panang curry paste and add additional Sriracha/Asian hot chili sauce to taste at the end of cooking.
Variations and Dietary Restrictions:
More vegetables: This is a great recipe to “clean out your veggie drawer”. Try adding mushrooms, zucchini, bean sprouts, spinach, bamboo shoots or carrots.
Chicken: You can substitute the chicken for shrimp or tofu.
Rice: Brown, white, or jasmine rice pair well with curry, or skip the rice and serve your curry over zoodles or spaghetti squash.
Vegetarian and vegan panang: Use a vegetarian curry paste (one that doesn’t contain fish sauce or shrimp paste) like this one. Also omit the chicken and fish sauce from the recipe and add additional vegetables of tofu!
The customization of this Panang Curry is endless, and so will be your love for it!
Storing and Freezing Instructions:
This recipe will keep for 5-7 days in the refrigerator (and that makes it a fabulous MEAL PREP dish)! For even quicker meal prep, you can cut the chicken and slice the red bell peppers in advance.
Panang curry can be frozen for 2-3 months. Allow it to thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat on the stove or in the microwave. Cook rice fresh for serving.
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Recipe
Panang curry
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 tablespoons Panang curry paste *
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter
- 2 pounds chicken breasts , cut into pieces against the grain
- 1 small onion , sliced
- 1 green bell pepper , thinly sliced
- 1 red bell pepper , thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- 4 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 14 oz cans coconut milk (Chaokoh brand is my favorite)
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar , packed
- 1 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 cup loosely packed basil leaves , roughly chopped
- Hot cooked rice white, brown or jasmine
Instructions
- Heat oil over medium-high heat in large non-stick skillet. Saute onions for 2 minutes, then add bell peppers, garlic and ginger and saute for 2 minutes more.
- Add curry paste and peanut butter and saute for 1 minute. Add 1 ½ cans of coconut milk. Whisk cornstarch into remaining ½ can coconut milk then add to the pan. Stir well.
- Add chicken, stirring to coat. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or just until chicken is no longer pink and sauce begins to thicken.
- Stir in sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, and basil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve over hot cooked rice.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
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This came out as good as restaurant quality. It is my favorite thing I’ve ever made in my kitchen. I didn’t change anything; it was just perfect. The next time I make it, I’ll slice the peppers a little thicker so that they retain some body.
Great flavor and easy to make. I did sub chicken for extra firm tofu + chicken bouillon cube. Next time I make this I will half or even omit the brown sugar since I prefer a spicier and more savory dish.
Rubbish, made from scratch?? Lost interest when second ingredient is shop bought paste. Guess my idea of ‘from scratch’ doesn’t include processed food from Amazon…
I love thai food. I followed this recipe with the exception of not utilizing the cornstarch as the natural broth thickness was to my liking. Absolutely delicious!!! Yummm!!!
Would have hoped for more flavour
I’ve made this wonderful recipe about a dozen times. While great as written, I have made a few modifications at home: twice as much ginger (or more), one can of coconut milk, add sliced carrots. I use Mae Ploy Panang curry paste. If I use whole coconut milk, I leave out the corn starch. I keep the cornstarch when use light coconut milk. I also often skip the brown sugar. It tastes good with the sugar, but it also tastes good without it so I figure it’s an opportunity to reduce my sugar intake. Great recipe!
This was delicious. Easy, colorful, perfect amount of spice. I will make it often. I will slightly reduce the sugar, but otherwise I loved it.
sounds great! Is the nutrition information without the rice?
That is correct!
I’ve made this wonderful recipe about a dozen times. While great as written, I have made a few modifications at home: twice as much ginger (or more), one can of coconut milk, add sliced carrots. I use Mae Ploy Panang curry paste. If I use whole coconut milk, I leave out the corn starch. I keep the cornstarch when use light coconut milk. I also mix the curry paste and peanut butter into the coconut milk before adding it to the pan. I was having trouble with the paste and peanut butter staying as clumps in the sauce, and dissolving them into the coconut milk first solved that problem. I also often skip the brown sugar. It tastes good with the sugar, but it also tastes good without it so I figure it’s an opportunity to reduce my sugar intake.
Not the best, it was easy to make but it didn’t taste like the Panang curry I usually buy from restaurants. Something is missing to it.
My first time making Thai curry. I am so glad this recipe popped up! It was simple to make and was so delicious! I couldn’t find panang curry so I used red curry paste. I did add an extra table spoon of curry paste and extra lime juice; it was perfect! Thanks for the recipe! I will definitely be making again.
It was okay. It didn’t have a lot of flavor. But it was easy and fast
Will make again forever and ever!
My wife gets Panang curry nearly every time we order Thai and she said this was better than anything she’s had. Huge compliment to this recipe (and me as the cook). So delicious.
This was fantastic! We love Thai food (spent quite some time in northern Thailand) but have no good restaurants even remotely nearby, so we have to make it ourselves. I’ve tried a few different panang curry recipes over the years and yours is the best yet! We’re not meat eaters so I subbed tofu for the chicken, but otherwise made it as is.
I’ve been trying to find the perfect curry receipe and I think this is it. I used coconut sugar in place of brown but everything else as published and it was amazing!
We love getting panang curry for takeout. We moved and no longer live by our favorite place so now we make this at home and it is a family favorite. I have picky eaters and they all love this!
I loved this recipe, made it exactly as stated (although added broccoli, carrot, and snow peas to get rid of extra veg in the fridge) and it turned out perfectly. I used Ayam curry paste as that’s what was available and it was delicious and had a good level of spice for me. My one comment would be to check you get Thai basil, as a first timer to Thai cooking I didn’t even think when I picked up basil at the shops that I should be picking a different one!
We made this last week and absolutely loved it! New regular in the rotation for sure.
I made this and my husband thought this was one of the best dishes I’ve ever made! It’s so good. The only thing I didn’t add was the lime juice (thought I had it at home but didn’t). It was still great without it. Thanks so much for this recipe!
Way too sweet. I’d only use 1/4 tablespoons of sugar next time.
This recipe was a lot of work, and somewhat disappointing, until we added heavy whipping cream. Then it was HEAVENLY!
Ok to use yellow curry paste instead?
Sure, but you’d be making yellow curry, instead of panang. Here’s my recipe for yellow curry Id recommend instead: https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/yellow-curry/
Made this a few months ago and loved it going to try again but use duck instead should I precook the duck before adding to the curry?
5 stars! Absolutely delicious! I did add a lot more fish sauce and lime juice and it was perfect!
I second this. There isn’t enough salt to balance the sugar and acid from the lime without at least doubling the fish sauce. I also added thai chilis for heat. Other than that, this is pretty good!
Delicious!!
We enjoy many Thai dishes but I had never made a curry dish. This tasted just like when you order it out. Very simple. Once you get everything chopped and prepped it comes together quickly.
Made this exactly as written(but added a little broccoli). It tastes just like the dish I get at my favorite Thai restaurant! Everyone loved it too! So excited to print this out and add to our favorite recipes cook book 😄 It is a decent amount of prep but it is all cooked in 1 pan. And honestly the prep was easy.
Excellent recipe – the best I have tried so far that tastes just like the restaurant we used to go to in our old town.
This is my favorite panang curry recipe. Two things I do is I use coconut oil to sauté and instead of chicken I use eggplant, bamboo shoots (canned) and water chestnuts (canned). Roughly about the same volume as the chicken. I double the recipe and freeze it, which it reheats so nicely.
Love LOVE this recipe! Thank you!
Recommend Maesri brand paste.
Pleaseeeee add Makrut lime leaves to your Panang curry!!! They’re the cornerstone flavor of this dish, it’ll taste like something’s missing without them.
Find frozen in the Asian market.
I have no doubt that this is a 5 star recipe. I had Mae Ploy panang paste and used that but it was bland. Ended up doubling the called for amount of paste & peanut butter which made it better. Def will make homemade paste next time. Thanks for sharing!
Superb recipe! Extremely consistent when different brands of ingredients are used.
Absolutely delicious! Very authentic and so easy to make. It will definitely be on my list of favourites.
OMG! We have no Thai restaurant anywhere near us and it happens to be our favorite food. This dish was as good or better than any Panang Curry we’ve ever had. Thank you so much for posting this recipe.
I made this 2x now and it is delicious! Highly recommend it and it’s not too difficult to make. We have a super Thai restaurant nearby and this gives it a run for it’s money!
Holy cow! Definitely restaurant worthy! Very impressed with final outcome.
Thank you!
This recipe is amazing! Panang curry is my absolute favorite type of curry, and I love curry. I decided to try this from scratch recipe. I ordered the Panang curry paste from Amazon as I couldn’t find it in my local grocery store. The other ingredients I had on hand or purchased them easily. I was expecting this to be complex and hard to prepare. I was wrong. Yes, there are a lot of ingredients but it’s all prepared in one pan. It came out perfect. I’ll never order Thai takeout again! I also froze the leftovers and it was still delicious. Thank you so much for this fantastic recipe. I’m making it for company tomorrow.
How does this recipe fit into the “tastes better from scratch” category when the first item is red curry paste?
Thanks for your comment and for reading the blog post! While we did include a link to a homemade red curry paste recipe earlier in the post, we understand your concern. The reason we included store-bought red curry paste in this recipe is to make it more accessible to those who may not have the time or resources to make it from scratch. That being said, we always encourage using homemade ingredients whenever possible for the best taste and quality. I hope this explanation helps and that you enjoy the recipe!
Delicious! Love the adjustments to a recipe I usually make. Hubby loves panang curry and enjoyed this one too. We will use this one more.
This was DELICIOUS! I used red curry paste because I couldn’t find panang but it was soooo good. Tasted just like what I order from my favorite Thai restaurant, thank you so much for sharing!
Oh my gosh! Thank you for this recipe. Having this tonight, just waiting for the rice to finish. The sauce is just how we like it— just the right level of heat with 2 tablespoons of paste. We love peanut butter so used 2 tablespoons for that too. I was a bit anxious there was no mention of salt and pepper but I needn’t have worried. Tasted the sauce before the final ingredients and it was’ok’ but the sugar, the lime, the fish sauce make it spectacular. Sauce is thickening as we are waiting for the rice. Our favorite Thai place closed and we have missed this taste!
I love Panang! Was craving it. So used your recipe tonite. Used chicken and shrimp. Turned out great, everyone loved it. 😋
I made this a couple days ago but I used chicken thighs rather than breasts for the added flavor. Turned out great! I had used a different recipe a few months ago that didn’t turn out nearly as good as this one. However, I will say that if you use Maesri curry paste (I did this time, used Mae Ploy last time) that you will likely need to up the amounts used. It’s not nearly as spicy as Mae Ploy so I doubled what recipe called for and I still feel like it wasn’t enough. Keep that in mind if you can’t find Mae Ploy.
Yum! I doubled the paste amount and it was really good. Thanks for the recipe.
Did you know that 99% of coconuts picked in Thailand (including for Chaokoh) use horribly mistreated monkey slaves? Yikes! Other countries have better track records, but I don’t know if anywhere guarantees they aren’t using monkey slaves.
Lived in Asia for 7 years this tastes like the steeet curry’s we had in so many places!
I have made this twice now and I love it! Thank you so much for putting together this recipe! I’m so happy I can fulfill my craving without ordering out. And I have leftovers!
I have made this several times and I love it more every time. Such a delicious, rich and uncomplicated recipe. I think it is better than any I have eaten out. The only sub I used was Arrowroot instead of Cornstarch. Subbed 1:1. Perfect and so good!!
Seems I’m always disappointed both by online Thai curry recipes and curry I buy in so many Thai restaurants. So much of the curry I try, doesn’t matter where, is just soupy and runny. Whereas, Thai curry shouldn’t be as thick as Indian curry, it shouldn’t be thin and soupy either, but somewhere in-between. Why is this so hard for even restaurants to get right? This recipe makes an attempt to thicken it with corn starch, at least, and it produces a product better than most Thai restaurants near me.
leave out all the sugar! waaaay toooo sweet. Ruined it.
OMG, I am so tired of people
commenting on a recipe that did not follow it exactly. What is the point?!? If you aren’t making it as the author states, you should not comment. You aren’t making the same thing! Wait until you have all the ingredients, r at least make the recipe as posted and then your way and compare. Drives me nuts “ALMOST” as much as people who comment who haven’t even made the dish! “Looks great. Can’t wait to try.” No one cares that you think it looks good! Ugh!…
Now, I made exactly as given. It is delicious, like several other recipes of hers I have used. Very easy to make and family loved it.
I made this recipe and I was unexpectedly surprised at good it was. I made a couple of changes (because its what I had at home), one of which I think improved the recipe. I used red curry paste with a little nutmeg added(one of the differences between red curry paste and panang curry paste) and I used coconit cream rather than coconut milk. I think the coconut cream gave it much more richness and depth. I also did not have kaffir lime leaves on hand but theyre in the curry paste so I couldnt tell. I was so excited when all was finished and what I made tasted like I picked it up from a Thai restaurant! Easy and delicious!
Delicious! This was better than our local Thai restaurant options. Very pleased with the results and will be making again.
Did you use regular basil or Thai basil? I’m growing both.
I prefer Thai basil, but either will taste great!
Any alternatives for families with peanut allergy? Another nut butter?
Yes, almond butter would work great!
I am a lover of great Thai food and was pretty much hooked on it when I lived abroad. My small town back home doesn’t have any so I’m learning to cook it. Let me tell you this recipe is spot on for authentic, restaurant quality Thai! It’s absolutely perfect!
So easy to cook, smells and taste amazing, the whole family loved it, clean bowls all round. Definitely be cooking this again.
I love Thai food. This was very good. I put in 6 tablespoons of Penang paste and still didn’t think it was hot enough. Good flavor. A recipe I would make again.
Instead of adding so much more paste, why wouldn’t she just add some Sriracha?
I loved this recipe and the results! I substituted large shrimp/prawns for the chicken, added pounded lemongrass (fished it out before serving), and also added baby broccoli, Bok choy and spinach. I’ve already shared this recipe with a friend and plan to make it often.
Wow! This recipe is perfect! It really does taste like a restaurant quality Penang curry! I will make this again and again. It’s spicy but pleasantly so! Use the suggested curry paste, it works!!
I made this tonight and it was delicious! I used bell pepper and broccoli and they were perfect but now that I’ve got a feel for how it cooks next time I’ll add more variety. I was so impressed by how easy it was. I used the recommended curry brand and amount and it was definitely too spicy for my young kids but my husband and I really liked it. Next time I think I’ll use a bit less though as both my husband and I agreed less spicy would still be just as enjoyable.
I do have one question…the texture of my curry was coming out as I would expect up until right near the end around when I put in the final ingredients. It’s as if it lost its thickness and became more watery and the oil separated. Any idea why that would happen? The flavor and everything were still wonderful it just went from a thicker more restaurant type curry to one that seemed more watery out of the blue. I’m thinking it’s something about the coconut milk and temperature? Or maybe because my cornstarch is close to it’s best by date? But I have no idea. Any input is greatly appreciated!
Regardless of my one mystery error this recipe seriously rocks. Thanks so much for sharing!
Made this today and omg so good taste just like the Thai restaurant I go to!
Anyone have suggestions for making this a little bit healthier? I subbed one can of whole fat coconut milk with 2 cups of cashew milk and it came out ok—a little bland. Maybe I should use something other than cashew milk? My store did not have low fat coconut milk. I think my ratios were a little off too—I added a lot more veggies (zucchini, carrots, broccoli, tomatoes, bamboo shoots) and doubled most of the recipe except the sugar and chicken. Used 4 tbsp of maesri curry paste and I’d say my dish is mild approaching medium heat. Any thoughts on how to add more flavor to the batch I made without adding lots more heat? Thanks for the recipe and suggestions!!
So you didn’t follow the recipe and marked it down to a 4/5 because you did your own thing? How does that make sense? How about making it the way the author posted and then your way and comparing. Seems terrible to give a lower score because you can’t follow directions.
Excellent flavor, better than restaurant quality and so easy to make! I added an extra bell pepper, mushrooms and a bit of keffir lime leaves. Delicious!
One-off the BEST Panang Curry recipes I’ve tried!
This was amazing and on point! I don’t need to go to a restaurant for this anymore, thank you! I used the Mae Ploy brand and it does provide just the right kick.
Excellent I missed a few ingredients like fish sauce used soy sauce in its place . I didn’t have basil so I used parsley. As good as what I order in Thai restaurants. Also added fresh tomato and spinach.
This curry is amazing! It was an easy recipe, and I’ll definitely make it again
Our Asian store was out of panang curry paste so I bought the red and doubled up on the peanut butter. An Asian lady also told me to use coconut cream instead of milk because it comes out much creamier which it did. I halved the corn starch since I used the cream. It came out better than some I have had at good Thai restaurants and my family loved it. I am from Louisiana originally so I am used to making good gumbos, jambalaya, etc., so learning how to make this is a nice treat and I can’t wait to make it more frequently. A lot less work than my gumbo from scratch. Thank you!
There’s nothing ‘from scratch’ about this recipe. I was expecting the curry paste to be made from scratch but instead you’ve bought it, and then followed the instructions on the side.
Really disappointed.
I’ve linked to a homemade curry paste recipe for anyone interested in that step. And no, this definitely isn’t the recipe off the side of the can, as you’ll see if you compare the two (this ones much better!).
You really could have just kept Googling for a recipe that meets your qualifications of “from scratch”…why post negativity in someone else’s space for absolutely no reason?
I have the curry that she recommends and this is not the recipe on the side.
To say that it’s not from scratch because she’s using a store bought curry paste is like saying that a recipe that uses any sort of store bought seasoning blend isn’t from scratch, which is nonsense.
Camille, I agree with you 100%! Lauren even gave a link for a Panang Curry paste recipe
I completely agree. Even the queen herself, Ina Garten, says store bought is fine!
Excellent! I waited to add the red peppers until I was almost ready to serve it. I also added some more veggies at the end (kale, carrots, snow peas and nappa). I added some shallots and jalapeños with the onions, garlic and ginger! My son (28 yr old) said it was every bit as good, if not better, as any Thai Restaurant he’ss been to!
Hi Jazz,
Your criticism seems to be undeserved here. I’ve been making Penang curry (many times making my own paste) for 30 years, and this recipe is spot on. It is nice to have curry paste in the pantry because the ingredients can be difficult to find in short order (like before dinner 😉). My preferred brand of curry paste is Maesri, there is no recipe on the side, and it is vegan. Maybe give it a try!
Lauren, great recipe!
Most folks wouldn’t find all the ingredients to make it correctly or just bollocks it up anyway. This recipe allows people to make an elaborate tasting dish at home! Finally and thank you!
Made it last night and it was awesome. I didn’t have the basil because I couldn’t find any so next time I’ll definitely add it. Added some leftover mushroom and fresh greens beans and doubled the Mae Ploy.
OMG when I tell you this was AMAZING! Restaurant quality! There aren’t any good Thai restaurants in my small town and I was always a little intimidated to try cooking it. I ordered the panang online but was able to get everything else locally. It wasn’t hard at all and I followed the recipe to a T. Absolutely FABULOUS!
So… this is such an INSANELY amazing recipe. I am pretty sure I followed it to a T, minus the lime (only bc I didn’t have any). I may have put in a tad more peanut butter too. ANYHOW… I just had to post and say how ON POINT this recipe is and how thankful I am for it. This will deff be a staple now. I must add, it is really important to get a good whole fat coconut milk…. it totally makes the recipe. Additionally, the onions fatten up the recipe and the cornstarch is a must too. I am about to make it again and am going to add in some zucchini and orange/yellow peppers…. some home-grown basil on top too… OMG can’t wait. THANK YOU! I am so thrilled… and so i my husband and I assume my co-workers are going to flip when I bring in lunch tomorrow 😉
So you didn’t really follow it to a T? If you didn’t have lime (a necessary ingredient for taste) you shouldn’t say you followed it to a T. People amaze me. Wonder if the lime would have given it 5 stars?
Very tasty!
This tasted exactly like I imagined it would. Identical to the panang curry at our local Thai place. And the kids devoured it. Big, big hit with the family. This one’s a keeper.
Great! My first Panang curry, actually my first cooked curry! It was great following this recipe🥰 We loved it! Thanks
We loved it! This was our first time making our own curry and I added carrots as noted and fried tofu. It is so delicious!!! We will make this again!!
This recipe was delicious! I made a few modifications by substituting Coconut Sugar and using a little extra peanut butter and curry paste. The flavors were delicious and everyone enjoyed. Thank you for this easy recipe!
Great recipe, added a couple of Thai peppers for a little a heat.
Love it! One of our new faves
Made this last night. Was a hit even with my 1y/o granddaughter. This dish was not spicy [we like spicy] but perfect for my mother who doesnt even like black pepper or paprika because its too spicy for her. I added sambal oeleck chili paste for heat/spicyness ..definitely a make again meal!!
I made this last night with shrimp and it was delicious! Better than my regular take out place. Thank you for an easy to follow, quick recipe!
I am about to make this for the 3rd time in 6 weeks, always doubling the recipe. We have added carrots, mushrooms, zucchini, snap peas, baby corn and bamboo shoots. I have to use a huge paella pan every time. We cannot get enough. Bought the red and green pastes as well and looking forward to trying those. Thank you!
I love this recipe! I’ve made it a few times now and have tweaked it to my taste. My family LOVES it.
I only wish the recipe did not recommend Chaokoh coconut milk as they use abusive forced monkey labor. Thankfully, stores like Target and Costco have taken it from their shelves for this reason. Chaokoh coconut milk should absolutely not be recommended in this or any recipe.
Hi, There is one dish of Thai food that I especially LOVE. It is Khing Curry. It is made with a red curry sauce which is
a little spicy but I love it. It is made with rice (brown or white), whole fresh green beans and I order it with chicken.
I don’t know if you are familiar with Khing Curry and if you can tell me which of your red sauces maybe the one to use. Thank you so much for all your great recipes!!
Hi, I thought this was a good recipe, thank you for the inspiration. I did adjust the recipe slightly to make it a more authentic way of Thai cooking, so I added roasted peanuts instead of peanut butter, used palm sugar over brown sugar and use kaffir lime leaves instead of lime juice and basil. I used to cook with Mae Ploy, but I’ve now found an even better brand called Mae Jum. I found them on Amazon, worth checking out.
Made this for dinner tonight. Doubled the recipe, subbed chicken with seafood (2 lbs of 8-12 count shrimp, 1 lb sea scallops, 1 lb lump crabmeat), added fresh mango, sadly had no basil. Definitely added way more curry paste (😂). Listen, we crushed it. Family loved it. I normally order from the neighborhood Thai restaurant, but this is my new fave. Thank you for the recipe. Oh, left out the peanut butter. Delish!
Cut this delicious recipe in half. Fed two of us at dinner plus lunch the next day. One of the best Thai recipes I’ve tried.
This was great. I used two heaping tablespoons of Thai Kitchen ted curry paste. Wasnt spicy at all, so i added another. Still not spicy. And I am a weakling when it comes to thai food. Im like “1 out of 10, ill take 1 please”. And its still toospicy for me. This was delicious, i just miss that kick of spice. Maybe ill add chili oil.
Try using canned Thai curry paste from the Asian market.
Try sambal oeleck chili paste…i get it at Meijer…has a great flavor and heat. Little does go along way
About 20 years ago, I had my first chicken panang at Golden Thai in Florida. My boss bought dinner and recommended it – also Thai Hot. I had no idea what to expect nor did I know it was curry. The waitress said ‘you crazy American’ with a smile. It was amazing. Spicy but not painful. Chicken was good but I pushed away everything and let my rice soak up that sauce. Since then, Ive tried to make it and order it elsewhere when I traveled. Ive never had the same experience. Ive even been to Thai places that dont have it on their menu and are amazed that I know what Chicken Panang is. They’ve made it for me though not on the menu. Good – but not what I remembered. Ive been back t o Golden Thai several times over the years. I followed this recipe to a T tonight minus the basil. By far, the most delicious Ive ever had. This was spot on Golden Thai to me only better. I dont know what fish sauce brings to the party but I special ordered that and the Mae Ploy Panang Curry paste. Ive used store bought before and have never been happy with the end results. I suppose both are store bought but not in my area. Lime and Ginger were fresh though garlic was squeeze bottle. I will be making this again – a lot. I also used tofu instead of chicken. Im not a tofu person but my love for panang was the rice soaking up the sauce (curry?) and this sauce was amazing. Im not against chicken but I wanted something to last a few days and I dont like leftover chicken. It either starts to taste funny to me or gets a weird texture after reheat. Im one of those that temp probes everything so as to not overcook and its always best the day of. Chicken and Tofu both just take on the flavor of whatever so thats what I used. Even the Mrs said it was the best shed every tried. She already packed up a bowl for work tomorrow which she rarely ever does. Shes not a fan of tofu either but now wants to do tofu enchiladas for some reason. My only complaint and I dont want to call it a complaint was mouth feel. I could tell it was thickened. To be fair, I dont use cornstarch for anything and what we had was probably expired. It may also have been the rice we used without washing first in a rice cooker. When I make this next, Ill leave that out. It was the perfect consistency but, I could tell it was thickened. Cant really explain it. Also, I did use 2 maybe 3 times the curry paste. I wasnt Thai hot, but it was spicy. Not painful to eat. Just right for us. Thanks for this recipe – its going into the ‘keeper’ slot.
Much easier then I thought it would be very good I expected the curry paste to be hotter since the bottle said hot, ended up using much more
Very good recipe! Divided into 5 meal prep containers and reheated one each day with a Hot Logi Mini (great alternative to a microwave for cooking and reheating). Its still good without the rice for a healthier option. Thank you for the awesome recipe. Here are the changes/variations to the recipe we made the last couple times we made this:
No onion, but added a 3rd bell pepper
Full can of panang curry paste and still wasn’t too spicy but added extra flavor
Doubled the basil
Added a touch extra cornstarch for a little thicker sauce since we were eating it without rice.
This was so amazing!!! This is going to be a staple for me whenever I want to use all my leftover vegetables! Thank you for sharing this. 🙂
I have made this recipe at least 5 times. It’s great and it is just like tha Panang curry that I get from my favorite Thai restaurant
This is a great recipe and super easy to ketofy! I swapped out corn starch for Konjac root (very little needed), Swerve Brown Sugar for the brown sugar, and I had some Thai Peanut Butter that I had received in my Keto Krate awhile ago. I only use Mae Ploy Curry Paste (I have Yellow, Red, Green and Panang) and full fat coconut milk. I had Thai basil on hand too. I served over cauliflower rice for a delicious dinner. This is my new go-to Panang recipe! Fool proof! A+++++
This is an easy-to-make recipe. Once I had all the ingredients I could follow the instructions step by step.
The flavors are very close to one at our favorite Thai place!
Amanda,
Standard guidelines for all published nutritional information is to list calories per serving, not for the entire dish.
The total calories across 5 servings would be closer to 1650.
This is a very good recipe. I didn’t change anything. Served with hot rice. This is restaurant-quality food! Excellent!
how do you store your curry paste? How long does it last?
I store it in the fridge and it lasts for several weeks.
I’m about to make this, it looks great but the calorie count is definitely misleading or something doesn’t add up right. For 5 servings you’re looking at over 500 calories not counting rice (2 cans of coconut milk and also 2 lbs of chicken and I stopped there). Not sure where the 327 comes from. Is it supposed to be 1 can of coconut milk? Want to know before I make this incorrectly thanks!
Absolutely delicious and very authentic. I followed the recipe exactly except I used coconut cream dissolved in water, dark brown sugar and substituted the meat for cod. After sautéing I threw it all in the one-pot pressure cooker for 8 mins. It tasted exactly how I remember when travelling through Thailand.
Hi there, was wondering how many cans of coconut cream you used? Thanks!
I accidentally bought unsweetened coconut milk can I use it ?
Do I add sugar ?
Canned, unsweetened coconut milk is what you want.
I made my own panang curry paste by adding cumin and coriander to red curry paste since panang isn’t available near me. I also subbed almond butter for peanut butter because of allergies. I added a little more corn starch and brown sugar and it ended up tasting just like the panang curry I’ve had in restaurants. So good!!!
This recipe was just ok. I tasted sugar mostly. Next time, I would omit brown sugar all together to get the coconut milk and red curry sauce flavor.
Bet you used coconut cream instead of milk? Following instructions is important. No way this dish is too sweet if you make it as directed.
I made this tonight and it was delicious. I’ll be making this again. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
outstanding!! I am pregnant and one of my cravings has been curry- and instead of spending all my money eating out at Thai restaurants I searched for a recipe online. This tastes just like my favorite curry dish! Feeling super thankful I found this! 🙂 I am one happy mama to be! SOO quick and easy too! I added sweet peas to mine since that is what is in the Panang curry dish at my fav Thai restaurant. LOVE
Can I substitute cornstarch with flour?
Cornstarch has twice the thickening power as flour. So you could try substituting it by doubling the flour.
Very good, just right for me but I’m taking away a star because it was too spicy for my family! I’m glad I only used 1 tablespoon of the Mae Ploy curry paste. I added carrots, mushrooms and broccoli and used almond butter. I didn’t have any basil or lime, but that would have made it even better! I didn’t thicken with cornstarch and the consistency was perfect for rice noodles. This will be going into my rotation for quick meals.
I did love this recipe like most of your recipes. However, not sure if you know this, but the Chaokoh coconut milk is a very, very bad product to purchase. This company uses captured baby monkeys and chain them to crawl up the trees to get the coconuts. They are terribly abused, do not get veterinary care and are fed little. These types of acts should not be happening in this world to any living being. It is so sad that you would use such a product. Perhaps it’s time to use another reputable coconut milk.
That’s good to know Monica and certainly a reason to avoid the brand you talk about. It would probably be better understood if you included a link to your source for that information. That way, people could read about it first-hand. Thank you for bringing this injustice to our attention.
I whole-heartedly agree, Monica. I hope the author of this recipe will edit the brand of coconut milk. We need to be responsible about the brands we support.
Oh boy, here we go! Another person preaching. Are we all supposed to know where everything comes from? Do you know the life of the chicken and cow you buy at a store, or the shampoo testing before you rub it on your scalp?I’m so tired of the preaching. I guess we could chain small children to climb the trees instead of monkeys?!? How about the iPhone or iPad you use? You do know the work conditions and the suicide rates of the Chinese workers at the Apple factory?!? Still using the phone though, right?!? You are such a hypocrite! Just make the recipe and leave the politics to another thread. I’m just trying to make curry, not cry while eating it!
You are so right! People criticize all kinds of things for inane reasons. If you don’t make the recipe exactly as described, don’t complain about it. It reminds me of folks that give products a poor review because of shipping issues. Take that up with customer service. I want to know about the recipe or product, period.
OMGOSH! This is my new most favorite recipe!!! I have been searching for a recipe like this as this is my favorite dish at a restaurant we would go to but they took it off their menu. This is sooooooooo delicious with layers of decadent flavors and just the right amount of spice. Seriously I could eat this for the rest of my life! Thank you so much for creating and sharing this recipe!
I’ve been making yellow and red curry for awhile now, but never Panang Curry. I wanted to try it because it has peanut butter in it and I LOVE anything wth peanut butter. I made this today, and the only change I made was adding some carrots and yellow squash with the bell pepper and onion. And I used pre-minced ginger and garlic to save some time. It came out really thick! I think this is the first curry I’ve made that is so rich and creamy. I can see that I may need to add some broth to thin it out a bit if needed, but I love it! I will be making this again and again.
I can’t begin to tell you how outstanding this recipe was! I originally was going to use a recipe I had found for my Instant Pot, but decided I wanted to use my cast iron skillet and cook it on the stovetop instead. I’m so glad I did.! In my opinion, nothing beats the FLAVOR that comes from cooking in your cast iron skillets and pots, and certainly this one delivered!
We have a favorite Thai place we go to and I order the red curry chicken while he orders the panang. But the last two times, he was disappointed, as they did not cook the veggies right. So, being that I found this recipe and had all but the peanut butter on hand, I decided to make it. He said it tasted FAR better than the one at our favorite Thai restaurant! I agreed! It was fantastic! I added asparagus to it also, but as she stated, including any veggie will work. This will be a favorite and a regular of ours from now on as it was so easy to make. THAN YOU!
This was awesome!! I’ve tried other recipes from others and they were ok but never got that restaurant feel. This got that flavor! I added string beans (pre-steamed), mushrooms, and carrots. I’d say the coconut milk brand the the curry brand is very important! I’d say it may be a little thicker than restaurants so I guess you could maybe not do the corn starch if that’s a must for you.
This recipe is amazing! We love panang curry so much and this recipe hit the spot. Subbed one can of coconut milk with chicken broth to cut down on calories and it was delish! Nice work on this!
Great recipe but I added red pepper flakes at end when I was cooking the chicken Because my curry paste wasn’t very hot. Great recipe easy just as good as Thai takeout
Ok I really have to say…. you are my favorite person on the planet right now. Not only was this recipe 5 stars but all of your recipes are amazing. I created my own meal plan for this week and I can create the shopping list for the needed items on your website and print. You make everything so easy AND delicious!
Thanks Kristy, that really is the best compliment I could get! I’m so happy you’ve enjoyed the meal plan options and some of my recipes!
This was easy and delicious! This is my favorite curry but I never imagined I could make it myself. I substituted purple basil, added a couple of thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves and some blanched green beans to the recipe and it was wonderful. My husband loved it! I plan on making this a staple dish in our household this winter. Thank you for the inspiration!
Title: Tastes better from scratch.
Second ingredient: Pre-made curry paste
Hmm…
I linked to a homemade curry paste within the post (just for people like you 😉 ). See the section above titled “Panang Curry Paste”.
Unbelievable! Another one who doesn’t read before posting.
AMAZING!!! The whole family loves it!!! Taste better than some restaurants!! Thanks for sharing!!!
One of the yummiest curries I’ve ever made…and I’ve made plenty. Great balance of flavors and puts our basil garden to good use too. 🙂
This is a super easy and super yummy curry! We love the different flavors that this meal offers and just how simple and quick it is easy to make
I made this curry and my whole family loved it!! I’ve passed the recipe onto my mom and sisters and now my neighbors have made it and everyone just keeps raving about it. Such a dynamic flavor and better than what I’ve had at restaurants!
I have a son with a peanut allergy – how much would it affect the taste if I left it out?
I think it will still taste great without it!
it tastes better from scratch, but apparently the sponsor’s pre-made paste also works lol
This is not a sponsored post and I’ve left a link to homemade curry paste in the post.
Delisish and easy to make. This will be in my meal rotation from now on!
Absolutely amazing! I did this with broccoli, peppers, green beans, and onions. Super yummy. Will definitely make again!
Panang Curry and Pad Thai are two of our favorite go-to take out options. I love making them at home! Thanks for sharing your recipes!
I LOVE curry. This one was DELICIOUS and my first experience with Panang curry. I loved the depth of flavor added with the additional sauce ingredients (ginger, garlic, peanut butter, lime juice, sugar). I’m excited to eat the leftovers. My veggies were a little over cooked by starting them first. (But I am admittedly a little slow in the kitchen.) I used onion, red bell pepper, broccoli and sliced carrots. I will make notes on my recipe to perhaps make sauce and simmer chicken and add veggies after as appropriate for veggie cooking time.
Lauren,
I’m a recently (March 2020) retired engineer, I’ve transitioned from loving to eat Thai food to loving to make it. You and your recipes have been a true inspiration. So far I’ve made the Thai Basil Beef (with venison), the Panang Curry (with shrimp), and the Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps. Each dish came out better than I hoped. Thank you so much for sharing these wonderful recipes. The Massaman curry is the next dish on my list.
I’m so happy to hear that, thanks so much Randy! What a fun way to cook with your free time now!
I loved this and will use it again and again
Any advice on adjustments to use this as a beef curry base?
Do you want a beef version of this recipe? You could simply substitute beef for chicken in this recipe. For beef curry, you could follow a beef curry recipe and compare it with the aspects you liked about this dish :). It’s pretty forgiving so i’m sure you can experiment and find a version you like.
I love curries- and this is great! I will make again and again!
A restaurant worthy dish! I was a little shy on adding all of the brown sugar, but added about 2/3 the amount. Added carrots and mushrooms. What a lovely base that can be played with. Coming from a small town with limited dining options, this was a perfect and delicious meal. I love Thai food and will use this as a “go to”. Great way to clean out the fridge. Yum!!!!!!!
Lauren, I thought I would let you know that there is a vegan “fish” sauce available on Amazon that is amazing. My son who is not vegetarian but who grew up as one cooks for me quite often and he says it is a dead ringer. It adds that flavor that you miss when it is taken out.