Thai Red Curry with Pumpkin

This Thai red curry recipe with pumpkin is an easy way to satisfy your cravings for Thai takeout and fall-inspired food. The curry is rich, creamy, savory, a little spicy, and slightly sweet from the pumpkin puree and fresh butternut squash. We’ve loved Thai food forever, and we’ve learned that once you stock up on a few key ingredients (good curry paste, coconut milk, fish sauce, and some aromatics), it’s surprisingly easy to make at home.

Why You’ll Love This Thai Red Curry Recipe

• Easy, weeknight dinner. This curry less than an hour to make, from start to finish (including prep time), so it easily comes together on any day of the week. 
• Restaurant quality, but you can eat it while staying cozy at home. We love supporting our local restaurants, but sometimes, there’s nothing like making restaurant quality food yourself. This curry tastes like you ordered it at your local Thai spot, but you can make and eat it in the comfort of your own home. 
• Homemade curry means you can control the spice, protein, and veg. Even with store bought curry paste, you can control the spice by adding more or less. 
• Loaded with bold flavors, textures, and hidden nutrients. Thai food is packed with wonderful umami flavors, and this curry doesn’t disappoint. It has a mild spiciness from the red curry paste, which is balanced by the coconut milk, tart lime juice, and fresh Thai basil. The pumpkin puree adds depth to the curry and sneaks in some health benefits.

Our Connection to Thai Food

We grew up eating Thai food with our Dad’s side of the family (he lived in Thailand for much of his childhood), so it holds a special place in our hearts and has influenced our cooking. Our dad often cooks Thai food, like sticky rice, stir fries with cashews and Thai basil, and Thai curry (sometimes with a less spicy version for our mom). 

The Thai dishes our dad cooked when we were kids always seemed complex and challenging because they came out tasting so deep and rich in flavor, but if you have the right ingredients, cooking Thai food at home is usually not too hard. 

Typical Thai Curry Ingredients (and Why They Matter)

Thai food usually has a wonderful balance of savory, sour, spicy, and subtly sweet. Thai curry usually starts with 2 main ingredients: curry paste and coconut milk. Red curry paste has a distinct rich chili flavor, a satisfying level of spiciness, garlic and shallots for depth, a subtle citrusy-pine flavor from galangal, and bright floral notes from lemongrass and makrut lime leaves. You can make your own, but store-bought is super convenient and usually just as good. 

We’ve added a little fall flair in this Thai red curry recipe by mixing in a can of pumpkin puree (which is not traditional) and butternut squash (it’s usually more traditional to see kabocha squash in a Thai curry). We’ve thrown in other veggies for texture, chicken thighs for protein, and lime and Thai basil for freshness.

Let’s talk about what makes a great Thai curry, in general.

Standard Thai Curry Ingredients

• Curry paste – this is the base of a curry. Each brand is different, with varying levels of spiciness and salt. Many curry pastes often include shrimp paste in the ingredients, so be sure to read the label for any potential allergens. We like Mae Ploy brand or Maesri (this one usually does not include shrimp, but be sure to check). We do not recommend Thai Kitchen brand as it’s not very flavorful. For more info on curry paste, check out Hot Thai Kitchen’s post about it. 
• Coconut milk – Thai food usually doesn’t have much or any dairy in it, so coconut milk is used to provide richness and balance heat. For this Thai red curry recipe, we recommend full-fat coconut milk for maximum flavor (light coconut milk is lighter in fat but also less flavorful).
• Aromatics – many Thai curry pastes already have aromatics like garlic, shallots, galangal, lemongrass, and sometimes makrut lime leaves in them. We often like to add more aromatics, like Thai basil, shallots or onion, makrut lime leaves, and sometimes even cilantro.
• Fish sauce – fish sauce is typically used in Thai cooking to add saltiness to a dish. It’s not as concentrated as pure salt, and it has a briny, salty, pleasing umami flavor. If you don’t eat fish, you can use a little regular salt or vegan fish sauce. Soy sauce could also be used, but it will dramatically alter the flavor if it’s not already part of the recipe.
• Lime juice – acid helps balance out the richness of the curry paste and coconut milk in Thai curries. We like to add this near the end of the cooking process so that the flavor stays bright and fresh.
• Palm sugar – palm sugar is the sweetness of choice in many Thai dishes. It has a mild, almost butterscotch flavor. If you can’t find it, the easiest substitute for palm sugar in curries is light brown sugar. 

Ingredients in This Thai Red Curry Recipe with Pumpkin

• Coconut milk – good quality coconut milk makes all the difference. Look for a brand that has few ingredients, has a thick and creamy texture, and looks opaque. For more tips, check out this article about coconut milk.
• Thai red curry paste – we have always used Mae Ploy brand for its rich, bold flavor profile. 
• Canned pumpkin puree – add a full can of pumpkin puree here for sweetness, nutrients, and pumpkin notes. This stands in for the palm sugar in this red curry recipe.
• Chicken thighs – chicken thighs provide a source of protein and flavor. They can be swapped for chicken breasts or another protein of your liking. 
• Chicken broth – this adds a bit of volume and gently thins out the richness. You can use water here or veggie broth if you prefer.
• Bell pepper – bell pepper softens nicely in the curry and adds texture and a little pop of fruityness. 
• Onion – yellow or sweet onion add flavor and texture to the curry.
• Butternut squash – this boosts the pumpkin flavor and adds a bit of natural sweetness. Traditional Thai pumpkin curry often calls for kabocha squash, but we usually have a hard time finding that in stores. If you can find kabocha, feel free to use it instead of butternut. 
• Thai basil – this adds bright, fresh, licorice notes to finish off the curry. If you can’t find it, you can use Italian basil but it’ll have a slightly different flavor. 
• Fish sauce – don’t be afraid to use fish sauce. A lot of recipes use it too sparingly and they can lack flavor as a result. If you’re nervous about using too much, you can use table salt to supplement, but trust us, this is where Thai food gets its flavor. Just start with a little and add more from there, if desired.

How to Make This Thai Red Curry Recipe

1. Add about ¼ cup of coconut milk (we like to scoop off the thickest part at the top of the can; just make sure not to shake the can beforehand) to a large sauté pan set over medium high heat.
2. Add the entire can of pumpkin puree and the red curry paste to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the pumpkin and curry paste start to darken and any excess moisture cooks off. This intensifies the pumpkin and red curry flavors. 
3. Add the chopped chicken to the pan, toss it in the pumpkin curry paste mixture, and cook for about 3 minutes so that it can take on some of those flavors. 
4. Mix in the onions, bell pepper, and butternut squash, then pour in the rest of the coconut milk and the chicken broth and stir in the fish sauce. 
5. Bring the curry to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium low and cover the pan with a lid (if you don’t have a lid, you can use a large plate or a sheet pan). Cook for 20 minutes or until the chicken and the squash are cooked through. 
6. Stir in the juice of half a lime, all of the Thai basil, and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. 
7. Taste for seasoning, adding more lime or fish sauce (or salt), if desired. 
8. Serve with jasmine rice.

Serving & Storage Suggestions

We like to serve this curry with jasmine rice and a lime wedge on the side. To reheat this red curry, you can microwave it or place the leftovers in a pan and cook it on medium heat to warm through. It’s great as a next-day lunch option.

Make This Thai Red Curry Recipe Your Own

• Change up the protein! Pork, steak, or tofu would be excellent.
• Make it vegetarian or vegan by skipping the fish sauce or using vegan fish sauce. Just be sure to check the ingredients in store bought curry paste as many brands include shrimp paste.

Final Thoughts on This Thai Red Curry Recipe

This Thai red curry recipe with pumpkin is a cozy blend of the flavors we grew up with and the ingredients we enjoy cooking with now. It’s comforting, bright, and surprisingly easy once you’ve got your Thai ingredient staples stocked. If you enjoy this recipe, we’d love it if you could rate it and comment below!

More Pumpkin & Squash Recipes

If you’re in the mood for more recipes featuring pumpkin and/or squash, take a look at these options:

• Pasta with Butternut Squash Sauce, Gruyere, and Greens
• Pumpkin Chili with Turkey and White Beans
• Pumpkin Hot Chocolate
• Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting