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Vietnamese chicken curry soup
Ginger and Scotch

Vietnamese Chicken Curry (Cà Ri Gà)

4.67 from 3 votes
Make this Vietnamese chicken curry with store-bought or with my homemade Vietnamese curry powder. Like all stews, it tastes better the next day and also freezes very well.
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Prep Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 6
Course: Entree
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Calories: 461
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 lb (1 kg) chicken thighs and/or drumsticks
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2 bags Vietnamese curry powder* (about 20 g total) or 4 tablespoons home-made Vietnamese curry
  • 3 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1 potato or sweet potato (peeled and cut into large chunks)
  • 1 taro (peeled and cut into large chunks)
  • 2 large carrots (peeled and cut into large chunks)
  • 1 large onion (cut into wedges)
  • 2 stalks lemon grass (smashed, no need to cut up so that it can be removed later)
  • 1- inch piece ginger (peeled and halved so it can be easily removed later)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 6 oz tomato paste
  • 1 quart water (or 1 liter)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2-4 tablespoons Vietnamese or Thai fish sauce (depends on strength and saltiness of your fish sauce brand)
  • 1 can coconut milk (13.5 oz)
  • salt and pepper (to taste)
  • 1 lemon (cut into wedges)
  • fresh herbs (for garnish such as cilantro, scallions, Asian basil)

Method
 

  1. Rinse chicken with water, drain and pat dry with paper towels.
  2. Sprinkle 1 bag of store-bought (or 2 tablespoons home-made) curry powder over the chicken and mix with your hands or spoon. Refrigerate chicken for 4 hours minimum.
  3. In a large pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat.
  4. Toss in the minced garlic and fry for about 30 seconds.
  5. Add chicken and brown on all sides.
  6. Throw in the potatoes, taro, carrots, onion, lemongrass, ginger, bay leaves, tomato paste, water, sugar, and fish sauce and stir to thoroughly mix everything.
  7. Bring water to boil and add the remaining bag of curry powder (or 2 more tablespoons of homemade). Simmer 30 minutes.
  8. Add coconut milk and simmer 10 minutes.
  9. Salt and pepper taste. Remove ginger slices and lemongrass if possible.
  10. Serve with rice, noodles, or French bread. Add garnish of fresh herbs and serve with lemon wedges.

Notes

*If you cannot find Vietnamese curry powder, you can use my recipe to make your own, or you can substitute Indian Madras curry powder.
-Serve with rice noodles, egg noodles, French bread, or even Udon noodles (my favorite)
-My favorite brand of coconut milk to use is Chaokoh which is sometimes sold under the Aroy-D brand name. I find most other brands to be bland.