Choo Chee Chicken Curry Recipe

Ready in 15 minutes, this Choo Chee Curry with Chicken recipe is a beloved Thai-Australian fusion dish. It features an easy curry sauce made with fragrant Thai red curry,  creamy coconut, kaffir lime and a hint of sugar for the perfect mid-week dinner.

Why We Love This

Choo Chee Chicken is PACKED with flavour and is super easy to whip up in around 15 minutes.

There’s just something about that glossy, spicy, coconut and red curry sauce infused with kaffir lime that will have you coming back for seconds.

Related: Thai Green Curry Paste / Panang Chicken Curry

What is Choo Chee Curry? 

Choo chee sauce is traditionally a style of Thai red curry paired with seafood in Thailand. In our hometown of Adelaide, it’s more popularly served with chicken. 

You can taste the Thai origins of this dish with its creamy coconut infused red curry sauce and finely sliced fresh kaffir lime leaves, palm sugar and fish sauce. 

P.S. If you love curries, why not try our amazing Vietnamese Chicken Curry, Thai Panang Curry or Indonesian Fish Curry?

What You’ll Need:

• Red Curry Paste – Feel free to use your favourite panang curry paste or pre-made Thai red curry paste.
• Coconut Cream – Coconut Cream is thicker and richer than coconut milk. It’s made by simmering four parts shredded coconut in one part water. If you can’t find it in your local supermarket, try checking your nearest Asian import store or look for coconut cream online. It’s fine to use coconut milk if you can’t find coconut cream, it will just be a slightly thinner sauce.
• Kaffir Lime Leaves – If you’re after that classic Choo Chee Chicken flavour then you won’t want to miss out on kaffir lime leaves. Depending on where you live, you might source them fresh from your local market or import store, or they may be dried or bottled in the Asian section of your local supermarket. You can also find dried kaffir lime leaves online. While kaffir lime has quite a distinct scent, you can substitute with 1 heaped teaspoon of lime zest per leaf. You can also add a squeeze of lime juice for good measure.
• Fish Sauce – This is essential. Fish sauce gives your Choo Chee Chicken that classic Thai saltiness. Again, you can usually find it in import stores, some supermarkets or buy fish sauce online. If you prefer to leave it out, you might like to add a little salt to taste or a teaspoon of soy sauce if you’re making a vegetarian version. 
• Palm Sugar – Palm sugar is a gorgeous natural sweetener with a mild caramel flavour. Feel free to substitute with coconut sugar, regular brown sugar or raw sugar if you can’t find palm sugar readily.

How to make Choo Chee Chicken Curry:

Let’s get started by heating up 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a large fry pan. Quickly fry the chicken in batches it transforms into a deliciously crispy golden brown. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Meanwhile, pop the red curry paste in a small saucepan with 2 tbsp of vegetable oil and stir. Continue to heat gently until fragrant. Pour in the coconut cream and most of the chopped kaffir lime leaves (keep the rest for a gorgeous garnish).

After the sauce has heated through, reduce the heat to low and stir in the fish sauce and grated palm sugar. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Now plate everything up by popping a scoop of cooked rice into your serving bowl and layer with cooked chicken. Pour over with plenty of curry sauce then garnish with extra chopped kaffir lime leaves and finely sliced capsicum.

Best eaten with a spoon and a fork!

Wandercook’s Tips

• Whether you’re making Choo Chee Chicken or fish, or prawns, or pork, etc, you can actually cook the meat separately however you like. We usually stir fry the thinly sliced chicken but it’s also fine to poach, grill, or steam depending on your preference.
• To slice kaffir lime leaves super thinly, first separate the leaves and then stack two or three at a time on top of each other. Roll up into a cylinder shape and then finely slice with a sharp knife. It’s much easier to slice the kaffir leaves this way than it is to chop them flat.
• We prefer to leave the sliced kaffir lime leaf in the dish when serving for more of that gorgeous citrus flavour, but if you don’t like the texture (it’s quite a firm leaf), feel free to strain the sauce before serving.
• Don’t be concerned if the sauce looks like it has separated with some of the oil floating on top – it’s actually a good sign! 

FAQs

Variations & Substitutes

• Choo Chee Curry sauce pairs perfectly with white fish, prawns and even pork instead of chicken. For a vegetarian option, why not try it with tofu or eggplant with bell pepper or enoki mushrooms? 
• For a vegan version, swap the fish sauce for soy sauce and make sure to use a vegan red curry paste. You may want to add a little extra salt to balance the flavour. 

Try these amazing Asian curries next:

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