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Thai Red Prawn Curry with Green Beans

Thai red prawn curry is the perfect quick midweek curry recipe, it is hot, sour, sweet & salty & it cooks in a blisteringly quick 15 minutes.

You can even use frozen prawns, I always do, and they can be defrosted whilst you prepare the other ingredients, adding no extra time!

Thai red prawn curry with green beans served with rice.

Thai Shrimp Curry

I love seafood curry recipes and not only because they taste sublime, but they are also so quick to make!

This Thai-inspired recipe joins an Indian prawn curry, Panang prawn curry, king prawn balti, Thai prawn stir-fry and a Thai red curry mussels recipe as well an Indian curry mussels recipe here as one of the quickest on my site.

The great thing about my Thai red prawn curry is that it is not just quick but it is so easy too!

This dish is one that I pretty much always have all of the ingredients for in either my fridge or store cupboard.

But be aware to get ALL of your prep done first. This recipe cooks in 10 minutes, you do not have time to find that fish sauce hidden in the back of the cupboard.

If you want to try other Thai-influenced curry recipes, check out my Thai salmon curry, Thai red beef curry, Thai green cod curry, Thai red curry vegetable soup, and mackerel choo chee curry recipes.

Overhead Thai red prawn curry with green beans served with rice.

Frequently Asked Questions

What red curry paste should I use?

You can of course make your own Thai red curry paste, and I usually do. But if you want to use store-bought, go right ahead this is meant to be a quick dinner!

My personal favourites are either Lobo or Maesri but use what you like.

What’s the best way to defrost prawns?

I usually defrost mine by placing them in a sieve or colander and running cold water over them.

This is typically a quick store cupboard and freezer dinner for me when i am in a hurry.

What size prawns should I use?

I typically use prawns labelled jumbo, king or with a size of 10-15. Prawn sizes indicate roughly how many you will get to the pound.

Can I use pre-cooked or pre-blanched prawns?

Yes, they can work, but you can skip the step of cooking them for 2-3 minutes in the curry paste.

Just add them into step 10.

Can I use low-fat coconut milk?

You could, I personally am not fond of low-fat coconut milk because it has far less flavour and a less pleasing mouth feel. But if low-fat is important to you, then knock yourself out.

Can I use dried lime leaves?

I usually try to make this with fresh but frozen leaves because they have a great deal more flavour than dried leaves.

If you are using dried leaves, soak them in hot water for 5 minutes before slicing and double (at least) the quantity.

Close-up Thai red prawn curry with green beans served with rice.

Serving Suggestions

As with many of my curry dishes I am a sucker for simplicity when it comes to sides.

I often prefer simple plain rice, in the case of this Thai red prawn curry steamed Jasmine rice.

But this Thai red curry is also great with coconut rice if you feel so inclined.

If you wanted to up the vegetable component of dinner then serving this with either my broccoli stir fry or my stir-fried asparagus is a great combination!

Thai red prawn or shrimp curry with green beans in a coconut milk sauce.

Equipment Used

I only name-check brands of equipment if I think they make a material difference to a recipe. If you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

  • Stovetop.
  • 12″ or 30cm frying pan.
  • Chopping board.
  • Kitchen knife.
  • Sieve to defrost the prawns (may not be required).
  • Weighing scales and or measuring cups and spoons.
  • Stirring and serving spoons.
Thai red prawn or shrimp curry with green beans in a coconut milk sauce.
Yield: 2 Servings

Thai Red Prawn Curry Recipe

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes

This insanely quick Thai red prawn curry is not only delicious but it comes together in just 15 minutes and you can use frozen, fresh or even pre-cooked prawns!

Ingredients

  • 250g (9oz) Prawns
  • 100g (¾ Cup) Green Beans
  • 3 Cloves Garlic
  • 225ml (8oz) Tin Coconut Milk
  • 1 Thai Birds Eye Chilli Pepper
  • 2-3 Spring Onions
  • 50g (3 Tbsp) Thai Red Curry Paste
  • 1 Tbsp Brown Sugar (add more to balance the taste to your liking)
  • 1 Tbsp Fish Sauce (add more to balance the taste to your liking)
  • 1 Lime (add more to balance the taste to your liking)
  • 1 Tbsp Cooking Oil
  • 4 Lime Leaves

Instructions

  1. Chop the garlic as finely as you can.
  2. Top and tail the green beans and cut them into 5-6cm (2") lengths.
  3. Finely slice the spring onions at a 45° angle separating the white part from the green part.
  4. Remove the central vein and finely shred the lime leaves.
  5. Cut the birds eye chilli into small rings.
  6. Heat a pan over a medium-high heat and add the oil.
  7. Throw in the garlic, chilli and white parts of the spring onions and fry for 1-2 minutes.
  8. Turn the heat up to high and add the curry paste and lime leaves then cook for 2 minutes.
  9. Add the prawns and cook for 2-3 more minutes stirring constantly.
  10. Add the coconut milk, fish sauce, brown sugar and squeeze in the lime juice and cook for 2 minutes.
  11. Finally, add the green beans and cook until they are hot which should take a final minute or two.
  12. Serve sprinkled with the green parts of the spring onion.

Notes

If you want a looser sauce add some fish stock with the coconut milk

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 476Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 17gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 290mgSodium: 2550mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 4gSugar: 9gProtein: 36g

Calorific details are provided by a third-party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.

Did you make this recipe?

If you made this recipe, I'd love to see what you did and what I can do better, share a picture with me on Instagram and tag me @krumplibrian and tell me how it went!

Paul Martin Edwards

Monday 3rd of August 2020

Hi Brian, Over here in sweaty Thailand the generic colour curries red,green,yellow, jungle tend to be Nam(wet) because the soup is used to moisten the rice. Having said that,Mrs E regularly churns out Hang(semi dry)curries for me. You got this spot on in terms of recipe & timings😉. Genuine thai 😆. Confess we buy the pastes. If you want a stonker look up Yellow or Jungle curries. Burn your eyes out 👀😜. Cheers Paul.

Brian Jones

Tuesday 4th of August 2020

Cheers Paul! I have a tendency to make all of my curries with less sauce than many people glad I now know the Thai word for it though :D I'm no intrigued about jungle curries, I'll see what I can see, although I definitely have a limit when it comes to spice ;)

Evelyn

Saturday 1st of August 2020

Love your story,can't wait to cook!

Brian Jones

Saturday 1st of August 2020

Thanks Evelyn, enjoy :)

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