Making your own curry paste is not scary. Promise!
This easy Green Curry Fried Rice with Crispy Chicken is about to Blow. Your. Mind. You’re not going to believe this, but you are about to make your own green curry paste. Yes you are. Yes you are!!
Don’t get scared.
I’m still not even sure I believe how easy it is to make your own curry paste. I also can’t believe how good it is and I’m not sure I’ll ever go back to buying it. That’s totally not true. Sometimes I’m too lazy even for the ten minutes it takes to make it. Know that I will not be upset if you choose to buy green curry paste to make your fried rice. No judgements here friend.
Right now you’re probably wondering what the heck green curry sauce is made of aren’t you? I didn’t know either until I started researching. There are a million variations as with any curry, but this one is made with lemongrass, garlic, jalapeño, lime, ginger, green onion, cilantro, kaffir lime leaves, oil, a few spices and seasonings and that is it. AND… you whiz it all up in the food processor in a few minutes. AND… it keeps in the fridge for weeks.
You have no excuses now. Except laziness. I will accept laziness.
Anything special you need to know?
Your rice choice does matter here.
Fried rice is always better with leftover, cold rice. Freshly made rice will clump together and be sticky, while older rice will fry much better.
This fried rice is best with aromatic jasmine rice and it’s always what I choose to use. You can use any long grain white, rice, but trust me when I say that jasmine is best.
What Ingredients do you need to make Green Curry Fried Rice?
- Lemongrass – pretty easily available in most grocery stores. I freeze any extra pieces for other uses. I love this article on everything you need to know about buying/using lemongrass.
- Garlic
- Green Onion
- Ginger – I keep fresh ginger in the freezer and grate it from frozen. I never peel it.
- Jalapeno – take the seeds out if you want a mild curry paste.
- Cilantro or Thai Basil – you can use the leaves and the stems if you use cilantro.
- Kaffir Lime Leaves – I buy these dried, but if you can find them fresh they freeze well.
- Turmeric, Cumin Coriander – all ground
- Sugar
- Oil – a light, neutral oil
- Chicken – boneless skinless breasts or thighs. If you want to make a vegetarian green curry fried rice just omit the chicken. You can easily sub in tofu.
- Soy Sauce
- Cornstarch
- Coconut Milk – full fat canned coconut milk
- Cooked and Cooled Rice
Anything Special You Need to Know?
I serve this rice with extra fresh cilantro and/or basil, sliced green onions and lime wedges.
I usually find the curry pastes I buy are quite spicy. The nice thing about making your own is that you can make it as hot or as mild as you like. Leave the jalapaño out completely if you want it veryn mild or add extra green chiles if you like heat.
As a general rule, no. Red curry is usually the spicier variety.
Recipe-ish…
Let me know what you think!
Green Curry Fried Rice with Crispy Chicken
Ingredients
For the Green Curry Paste:
- 1 jalapeño seeded or not*
- 2 lemongrass stalks chopped
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 lime zest and juice
- 3 Tbsp ginger minced
- 6 green onions
- 1 heaped cup cilantro
- 3 kaffir lime leaves dried
- 1/4 cup neutral oil
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
For the chicken and rice:
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs or 2 breasts
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce or fish sauce, divided**
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 cup coconut milk
- 4-5 cups cooked rice cooled
- 1/4 cup sliced green onion
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro and/or Thai basil
Instructions
First, make the green curry paste.
- Add the lemongrass and the garlic to a food processor and process until finely chopped.
- Add in the jalapeño, lime zest, ginger, green onions, cilantro and kaffir lime leaves. Process again until all is finely chopped.
- Add in the oil, turmeric, cumin, coriander, sugar and salt. Process until mostly smooth but retain a bit of texture.Set aside.***
Make the chicken and rice:
- Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and combine in a bowl with 2 Tbsp of the green curry and 1 Tbsp soy sauce. Let sit for 20-30 minutes.
- Add the cornstarch in with the chicken and toss well.
- Heat a thin layer of oil in a large skillet and when it’s hot add in the chicken.
- Let cook, stirring once or twice, until brown, crisp and cooked through. About 4-5 minutes.
- Remove the chicken to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.
- If there’s a large amount of oil in the skillet remove all but about 2 Tbsp. Add in 2 Tbsp green curry paste and let cooke 1-2 minutes. Add in the coconut milk, rice and 2 Tbsp soy sauce. Cook, stirring often, until well combined and hot.
- Top with the green onion, cilantro and chicken.
- Serve with lime and the extra curry paste.
Notes
**using soy sauce keeps this vegetarian (and leaving out the chicken, of course – crispy tofu would be delish too!)
***you can make the curry paste days, or even a week in advance
If you like this Green Curry Fried Rice Recipe please go try my Dragon Chicken Recipe. It’s crispy, spicy, easy to make a delish.
