Welcome to another one of my favorite speedy weeknight dinners: Chicken and Mushroom Coconut Curry! This recipe is made in just two steps with kitchen staples and one pot. It’ll be a new obsession for you, your family, guests; whoever is lucky enough to give it a try.
Not only does this glorious recipe dirty minimal dishes, but it only takes 30 minutes from start to finish. A kitchen is never truly empty! Sometimes you just have to let those creative juices flow to create something delicious out of a handful of odds and ends. Or, let me take over that role! That’s exactly how this recipe came to be for me.
When I was much younger and without a license to drive to the store, before Skip the Dishes was ever a glimmer in its creator’s eyes, I had to get creative with dinner. One night I found a can of coconut milk in the pantry, and a half-used can of red curry paste in the fridge. The rest, my friends, is history. This simple curry sauce has become one of my favorite quick-fixes for dinner.
Ingredients
Keep on scrolling down to the recipe card or click “Jump to the Recipe” at the top of the page for ingredient amounts and full instructions. Read on for substitutes, extra info, and tips!
- Butter – I like to use unsalted to have full control over the sodium, but it really doesn’t matter for this recipe.
- Olive oil – Other types of oil that are good for higher heat cooking are sunflower, safflower, canola, grapeseed, or avocado.
- Chicken breast –Skinless and boneless. Thighs will work too.
- Mushrooms – I used these beautiful shiitake mushrooms that I found at the store. Try something seasonal, your favorite type, or a mixture!
- Onion – Any type you have handy.
- Garlic – As much or little as you like! Emphasis on much.
- Coconut milk – Make sure you’re getting the canned coconut milk, also known as coconut cream, rather than the dairy replacement in a carton. While you can use the “lite” version, this recipe works best with regular coconut milk. It will be much creamier and more flavorful.
- Curry paste – I used red curry paste. Green or yellow will work as well.
- Salt & pepper – Season to taste.
- Garnish – Freshly chopped parsley or cilantro.
All about curry paste
Curry paste is typically made with ginger, kafir lime, lemongrass, garlic, and spices. I’ve used red curry paste for this recipe, but feel free to try it with yellow or green curry. Coconut milk is such a fantastic base to use for any type of curry you choose. It’s creamy, delicately flavored, and will compliment such a variety of flavors.
I usually like to use curry paste from a jar. A little goes a long way! If you don’t often use curry paste, it’s best to go with one of these small jars. You’d be surprised how much flavor you’ll get out of a few tablespoons. Unsure about how much of a punch you want to pack into your curry? Start with one tablespoon of curry and slowly add a bit more until the sauce suits your preference and taste.
What else can I add to my curry?
You can switch over to chicken thighs, try different types of mushrooms, or even change the recipe completely depending on what you have! Give these ideas a try:
- Tofu
- Cauliflower
- Chickpeas
- Peas/ snow peas
- Bell pepper
- Paneer
- Ground meat
- Beef or lamb
- Turkey
How to make chicken and mushroom coconut curry
- Sauté: Warm the butter and oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the chicken, and cook for about 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the mushrooms, onion, and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Curry it up: Stir in the coconut milk and red curry paste. Once bubbling, reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened to your liking. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve over rice and garnish with chopped parsley.
How to store leftover chicken and mushroom coconut curry
Transfer leftovers to an airtight container and store in the fridge for 3-4 days. While you can store it in the freezer for 3 months, it’s not ideal to freeze mushrooms. The texture can come out a bit slimy after thawing.
To reheat, use the microwave. Stir every 30-45 seconds until completely heated through. You can also reheat in a skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Stir often and add a splash of water or broth if you find the sauce is thickening up too much.
Did you love this recipe? Try these!
- One Pan Herb Roasted Chicken and Vegetables
- Cheesy Baked Salsa Chicken
- Skillet Cajun Chicken Sausage and Rice
- Tortellini Soup
- Butter Chicken
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Chicken and Mushroom Coconut Curry
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 chicken breasts cubed
- 12 oz shiitake mushrooms sliced
- 1 onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 14 oz coconut milk 1 can
- 3 tbsp red curry paste
- 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/4 tsp pepper or to taste
- parsley or cilantro, to garnish
Instructions
- Warm the butter and oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the chicken, and cook for about 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the mushrooms, onion, and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Stir in the coconut milk and red curry paste. Once bubbling, reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened to your liking. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve over rice and garnish with chopped parsley.
Made this tonight. It was delicious. Seconds left for tomorrow. Can’t wait. 👍 .
My nutritionist had something very similar to this on my meal plan… She used half and half instead of the coconut milk. It was HORRID and had the added disaster of all the H &H making my husband ill! My better sense told me that coconut milk would work better and probably be traditional in some cuisine. Thank you for your recipe and for affirming my suspicions! I already know that this is going to be delicious even w/o the butter which I can’t have. Making this week!
So amazing!!!! I tripled it for a family of 7 and we can’t wait to have the leftovers!!! We served it with broccoli and cauliflower. Amazing! And easy, too!
Oh…beautiful, Modified the recipe to 1/3, 1/2, 2/3 in places . as my wife does not eat meat ah…. Anyhow with a bit more chilli and hot curry… I will eat the second half tomorrow and already have the required components in the shopping list for tomorrow. Thankyou
Great Recipe. I’m not a huge fan of curry so I used the Yellow Curry Paste since it is mildest. I put in 1 12 T and it was a bit too spicy for me. Next time, I’ll cut it down to 1 T. I have a favorite Thai restaurant where I order Chicken Mango Curry. It’s just like this but they add shrimp, a few sliced carrots and small pieces of Mango. The sweetness of the Mango compliments the rest of the dish. I’m so happy to have learned how to make this and I can see how I can vary it with just about any additions desired. In fact, I made green beans separately on the same day and added them to my dish and it was great. I will definitely make this again.
So tasty – will make again.
Thanks
Able to substitute unsweetened coconut milk to make this keto friendly? Want to make for my roommate but she is on the keto diet.
This recipe is made with unsweetened coconut milk! The coconut milk you buy in a can is usually unsweetened by default, but check the ingredients on the can to be sure if you live somewhere that you find prefers the sweetened version 🙂
pls contact me this recipe is too good
I made this last night and it is delicious! Just wondering what is considered one serving for the nutritional information? Is that 2 prepared chicken breasts?
One serving will be about half of a chicken breast 🙂 You can have as many or few servings out of this recipe as you’d like. Multiply the nutritional information by 6 to get the nutrition for the whole recipe, then divide that number by however many servings you wish to have!
Very good. I used jungle curry paste and substituted parsley for coriander, as well as seasoning with fish sauce and palm sugar instead of salt and pepper. Other than that followed recipe and was done super quick. Thanks for the inspiration.