Description
Quick and flavorful Red Curry Dumpling Soup made with coconut milk, red curry paste, frozen dumplings, mushrooms, and bok choy. This one-pot meal comes together in just 20 minutes and delivers restaurant-quality Thai-inspired flavors with minimal effort.
Ingredients
For the Soup:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (I’ve used vegetable oil, canola, whatever’s in the cabinet, once used sesame oil by accident and it was fine)
- 1 green onion sliced (the dark green parts go on top later so don’t throw them away)
- 1-inch piece ginger grated (mine’s never exactly an inch, just cut off a chunk and grate it)
- 1 clove garlic minced (or two if they’re those tiny sad ones, I never measure garlic)
- 1 tablespoon red curry paste (I use Thai Kitchen because that’s what my grocery store has)
- 1 cup broth (chicken or vegetable, I grab whichever’s closer in my pantry)
- 1 cup coconut milk (FULL FAT from a can, not that refrigerated carton garbage)
- 1 cup mushrooms sliced (I buy pre-sliced because I’m lazy, they cost like 50 cents more)
- ½ cup bok choy chopped (one small head if you’re getting the baby ones)
- 1 cup frozen dumplings (any kind, I rotate through whatever’s on sale at Trader Joe’s)
For Topping:
- Sesame seeds (I forget these half the time, still good without them)
- Green onion pieces you saved earlier
Substitution Notes:
- No bok choy? I’ve thrown in spinach, regular cabbage, that bagged coleslaw mix, even frozen stir fry vegetables once. Spinach wilts in approximately five seconds so add it at the very end.
- Can’t find curry paste? It’s in the Asian section usually near soy sauce and sriracha. If your store doesn’t have an Asian section I don’t know what to tell you, try Target?
- Want it spicier? More curry paste. My friend Alex uses two tablespoons and literally sweats while eating it and refuses to admit it’s too spicy.
- Making it vegetarian? Read the dumpling package because I’ve found “vegetable dumplings” that have chicken broth in them which is bullshit.
Instructions
Chop everything before you start cooking. I know it seems like you’re wasting time but once the stove turns on everything moves fast and you don’t want to be frantically mincing garlic while your aromatics burn. Been there. Smells terrible.
Slice green onion, keep white and light green parts separate from dark green tops. Grate your ginger over a plate or bowl. It’ll be wet and stringy looking and that’s completely normal. Smash garlic clove with the flat part of your knife then mince it small. Slice mushrooms quarter inch thick ish, doesn’t need to be exact. Chop bok choy into bite sized pieces.
Stove on medium heat. Pot goes on burner. Add olive oil, wait like thirty seconds for it to warm up. Should look shimmery not smoking. If there’s smoke your heat’s way too high, turn it down.
Throw in white onion parts, all the grated ginger, minced garlic. Stir it around. Cook for 2-3 minutes stirring every twenty seconds or so. Garlic burns fast and burned garlic tastes like bitter sadness and ruins the whole pot. Don’t walk away during this part.
Spoon out curry paste from the jar. One tablespoon. Add it to the pot with all your aromatics. Stir it in really well, like really mix it in there. Cook for a minute stirring constantly so nothing sticks to the bottom and burns.
Pour in broth first. It’ll sizzle and steam when it hits the hot pot. Take your spoon and scrape the bottom to get up any stuck bits. Then add coconut milk. Stir everything together until the curry paste dissolves and you don’t have red clumps floating around.
Add sliced mushrooms and chopped bok choy. Stir it all together. Turn heat up a bit if needed. You want it bubbling gently, little bubbles popping on top, not a crazy rolling boil.
Lid on. Let it bubble for 2-3 minutes. This softens the vegetables and lets flavors mix together and do their thing.
Lid off. Grab frozen dumplings straight from freezer. Don’t thaw them that’s the whole point. Just dump them in frozen. I usually do like 5-6 dumplings for myself but recipe says 1 cup so however many fit in a measuring cup. Stir gently so they don’t stick together.
Lid back on. Cook 2-3 more minutes. They’re done when they float to the top and look puffy and swollen. Some brands take longer so check your package. I’ve had dumplings that took 5 minutes, some that took 2 minutes. When they float they’re ready.
Turn off stove. Get your bowl. Ladle soup in, make sure you get dumplings and vegetables not just broth because that’s annoying when it’s all broth.
Sprinkle sesame seeds on top. Just a little pinch not a lot. Add those dark green onion pieces you saved.
Notes
If you’re starving or feeding more people throw rice noodles in your bowl before adding soup. Or make rice on the side. The dumplings make this filling enough for me but Lauren always needs rice with it because she “needs more carbs” which I think is code for she’s still hungry.
Start with less curry paste if you’re nervous about spice. You can taste the soup halfway through and add more if you want it spicier. Cannot remove spice once it’s in there. I like spicy food so I use a full tablespoon sometimes more. My mom uses half a tablespoon and still complains it’s too hot. Figure out your own spice tolerance.
Keep it at a gentle simmer after you add coconut milk, not a rolling boil. High heat makes coconut milk separate and look broken and grainy and weird. If you accidentally do this take it off heat and whisk it aggressively and maybe it comes back together. Or just eat it anyway because it still tastes fine even if it looks broken.
Buy pre-sliced mushrooms if you value your time. Costs literally fifty cents more. Saves you three minutes of slicing. I do this probably 80% of the time because slicing mushrooms is boring and I’d rather be eating soup.
Fresh herbs on top at the end if you have them. Cilantro is traditional and great. Thai basil is even better but good luck finding that unless you live near a really good Asian market. Regular basil works. Makes it taste fresher and restaurant-like.
- Prep Time: 8 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Thai-inspired