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Home > Lunch/Dinner > Thai Panang Curry Recipe With Chicken
30 minutes

Thai Panang Curry Recipe With Chicken

Last updated January 18, 2021. Originally posted March 1, 2019 By Jyothi Rajesh 70 Comments

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Thai chicken curry served with rice in ceramic bowl with text
Thai chicken curry served with rice in ceramic bowl with text
Thai chicken curry served with rice in ceramic bowl with text
Thai chicken curry served with rice in ceramic bowl with text
Thai chicken curry served with rice in ceramic bowl with text
spicy chicken Panang curry cooked in cast iron pan with text
spicy chicken Panang curry cooked in cast iron pan with text
Thai chicken Panang curry served with rice in bowl with text
Thai chicken panang curry in cast iron skillet with text
chicken panang curry in cast iron pan with text
chicken panang curry in cast iron skillet with text
chicken panang curry in cast iron skillet with text
chicken panang curry in skillet with text
chicken panang curry in skillet with text
chicken panang curry served over rice on white bowl with text overlay

Thai chicken panang curry is a rich curry with complex flavors. You’ll need under 30 minutes to make this bright and hearty Thai Panang Curry.

best Thai chicken Panang curry topped with fresh basil cooked in cast iron pan

Calling all curry lovers! If Thai curry is your favorite curry, you’ll find yourself loving this creamy less spicy Panang curry. The creaminess of Panang curry and it’s distinct strong flavors is so addictive.

Lush spices – galangal, lemongrass, fresh kaffir lime leaves bring out a strong aromatics and coconut milk makes it rich and creamy.

Panang curry has peanuts in it, in either crushed form or peanut butter is added. And the curry itself is bit sweeter than normal Thai red curry.

Ground peanut is the additional ingredient that gets added to Panang curry, which you will not find in Thai red curry. Panang curry should and is much milder and much thicker than Thai red curry.

Other than that, you won’t really find much difference between Thai Curry and Panang Curry. Infact to most, Chicken Panang curry is indistinguishable from Red curry. That’s true! Except for peanut and being less spicy (and more sweeter) I could not make out much difference in Panang Curry.

Ingredient-wise I also used store bough Thai Panang Curry Paste which looked close to Thai Red curry paste. The curry paste are sold separately.  You could use Thai Red curry.

best Thai chicken Panang curry topped with fresh basil cooked in cast iron pan

Beef or chicken is the great protein option for this curry. If you are vegetarian, use Tofu to make this delicious Panang Curry.

Thai Chicken Panang Curry is one of those curries which you try it once and get hooked  for ever! If you like Thai curry , you definitely have to give this panang curry a try.

It’s almost same as a Thai chicken curry, but only packs more rich flavours and completely delicious! It’s a thick Thai curry with a sweet, salty and nutty peanut flavour.

How To Pronounce Panang

Panang is pronounced “Pa-Naing”.

What is Panang Curry

Panang is spelled in various ways – phanaeng, phanang, panaeng or panang, or as penang, or Pulau Pinang in Malay . This red curry originates from an island located off the west coast of Malaysia.

Panang curry is usually less spicy as the paste is made with lesser red chilies compared to Thai curries. Peanuts (in ground form mostly) and coconut milk makes the curry sweeter than other Thai curries.

Panang curry is richer, sweeter and creamier than the more herbaceous Thai curry.

What’s The Difference Between Red Curry And Thai Panang Curry

A lot of people including me had trouble differentiating the from one other – Thai red curry and Panang curry. When both the curries have almost the same ingredients list and are both red in color.

Let’s mark the small differences that both curries have.

Thai curry is mostly spicier. Between Thai red curry and Thai green curry, green curry is more spicier as green curry paste is made from whole green chilies. Green chilies are naturally more spicier than red chilies.

Thai curry has strong vibrant flavors from fish sauce, shrimp paste along with galangal, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves.

Thai curry paste is comparatively spicier as lots of red chilies are used in making the curry paste.

Panang curry has an extra ingredient in it which is not present in Thai green or red curry. Crushed or ground peanuts makes is that extra ingredient you don’t use in Thai curries. It’s less spicy compared to the famous Thai curry.

Panang curry paste looks just like Thai curry paste, bright red in color. But it’s made using lesser chilies, hence makes it less spicy. The curry is sweeter than other Thai curries. And much thicker as well.

Coconut milk and cashews(yes some add cashew paste) makes it richer, creamier and thicker. A pinch of nutmeg goes in the curry, which is not added to Thai curries.

Panang curry is a thick Thai curry with a sweet, salty and nutty peanut flavour.

best Thai chicken Panang curry served with steamed rice in white ceramic bowl

Homemade Panang Curry Paste

Traditionally Panang curry paste is made from scratch using a huge pestle and mortar. Nothing comes closer to fresh homemade curry paste from scratch.

Yes, it takes time  to prepare the curry paste (get ready for sore arms). Or conveniently add everything into food processor and blend into coarse paste. Choice is yours.

Panang curry paste is traditionally made from chili peppers (bits eye chilies), galangal, lemongrass, kaffir lime, coriander root, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, garlic, shallot, shrimp paste, salt and peanuts.  Grind everything in mortar pestle and your curry paste is ready.

And if finding all the ingredients is a challenge, use store bought panang curry paste( we did that).

Is Panang Curry Spicy

Yes, it is. But to my palate it’s mildy spicy. Though not as spicy as traditional Thai Red and Green Curries. In comparison, panang curry is sweeter.

Panang Curry Ingredients

The main ingredients you’ll need to make a good panang curry are:

Panang Curry Paste – Use store bought or homemade curry paste. Panang curry paste is sold separately, so I prefer to use that for more authentic taste. You could use Red curry paste as well.

Vegetables –Onion and garlic is needed to start off the base of the curry. To that you can add any vegetables. I used red and green bell peppers and to me it works beautifully with Thai curries.

You can switch it up and use different veggies like zucchini, broccoli, egg plant, sweet potato, celery or even mushrooms.

Protein – Chicken or beef is what I would recommend to use for non vegetarian protein option. Fish and shrimp are good seafood proteins. Use plain firm tofu is you want to make it vegetarian or vegan. Chickpeas would be good choice too.

Coconut Milk – use a mix of both full-fat (thick) and light (thin) coconut milk. Full-fat coconut milk will give you richer, thicker curry. If you like it that way, do use full fat coconut milk.

Natural Peanut Butter – Panang curry recipe has peanut as one of the ingredient. Use good quality, natural peanut butter that is unsweetened. I used peanut from the jar that has ‘just peanuts’. Not the ones with peanut and salt, or peanuts and sweeteners.

Coconut Oil – Curry tastes best with coconut oil. Use virgin coconut oil.

Other Thai Curry Ingredients – What makes Thai curry stand out are some ingredients like galangal, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves. These ingredients have strong flavors. Use it as much as you could take the strong flavors.

If your not a big fan of these strong Thai flavors, use all three ingredients in minimal quantity.

Fish Sauce – Though Panang curry does not usually call for fish and shrimp sauce like Thai curries, I added a dash of fish sauce. It makes curry, salty with strong flavor.

Nutmeg – another ingredients that is specific to Thai Panang curry is nutmeg. Use a dash of nutmeg powder. I skipped nutmeg as I didn’t have stock of nutmeg in my pantry.

Palm Sugar – use brown sugar if palm sugar is not available to you.

Thai Basil – Add basil leaves just before you serve the curry. Simmer and heat the curry and add basil leaves before serving. Basil leaves can turn dark from prolonged heating.

best Thai chicken Panang curry served with steamed rice in white ceramic bowl

Tips and Secrets

Essential step to make a good curry with great taste is frying curry paste in oil. Fry curry until you see oil separates from the curry paste.

Prior to adding fish sauce, taste your curry. There is a great amount of salt in store bought curry paste. Skip fish sauce if curry tastes enough salty.  If using fish sauce use it as needed. (Note – use the amounts in the recipe as a guide. Curry recipes are greatly flexible).

Kaffir Lime Leaves have bold flavors. Crush leaves before adding to curry. Crushing kaffir lime leaves with release all it’s aromatic oil to the curry. Lime leaves can be eaten from the curry, but I prefer to take it out. It turns a big tough after cooking, plus it’s has very strong flavor.

Use Panang curry paste depending on your spice preference. Start with 2 tablespoon of curry paste first, then gradually add as per your spice tolerance level. I like it spicy so I used up the entire jar which was about 4-5 tablespoon.

best Thai chicken Panang curry served with steamed rice in white ceramic bowl

How To Make Panang Curry

  1. Heat skillet or deep bottom pan. Add coconut oil and wait until oil melts.
  2. Sauté finely chopped onions in hot coconut oil until onion is translucent.
  3. Add minced garlic, red and green bell peppers. Cook for 2 minutes constantly stirring.
  4. Add roughly chopped galangal, lemon grass.

cooking Thai panang curry with chicken5.Push veggies to one side of the pan. Add washed and cleaned chicken things. Cook until chicken browns a bit and changes colour.

cooking Thai panang curry with chicken

6. Mix chicken and veggies together. Continue cooking it for a minute more.

7. Again gather chicken veggie mix to one side of the pan. Scoop out Thai Panang curry paste ( or Thai red curry paste) to empty side of pan. Stir the paste and fry it in oil. Wait until oil separates from the paste.

Pro-Tip : Do not skip frying curry paste in oil. Flavors cone out and curry turns delicious with this step.

cooking Thai panang curry with chicken8. Stir in unsweetened peanut butter, fish sauce and palm sugar. Take Kaffir lime leaves on your palm and crush it. Add crushed kaffir lime leaves to the pan.

Note – If you can’t get palm sugar , substitute with brown sugar or jaggery.  Crushing kaffir lime leaves helps release its wonderful aromatic oil, making Panang curry flavorsome.

9. Cook stirring regularly for 2 minutes.

10. Simmer flame. Pour in thick coconut milk. Give it a good stir.

cooking Thai panang curry with chicken11. Let it cook for 5-7 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

best Thai chicken Panang curry topped with fresh basil cooked in cast iron pan

12. Add few Thai basil leaves. Stir.

best Thai chicken Panang curry topped with fresh basil cooked in cast iron pan13. Turn off flame. Thai Chicken Panang Curry is ready. It’s great when served with steamed jasmine rice. You can also serve Thai Panang curry with rice noodles.

best Thai chicken Panang curry served with steamed rice in white ceramic bowl

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best Thai chicken Panang curry served with steamed rice in white ceramic bowl
5 from 44 votes

Best Thai Panang Curry Recipe With Chicken

Jyothi Rajesh
Thai chicken panang curry is a rich curry with complex flavors. You’ll need under 30 minutes to make this bright and hearty Thai Panang Curry.
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Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 30 mins
Course Dinner
Cuisine Asian, Thai
Servings 6 servings
Calories 460

Ingredients
  

  • 1 ½ lbs chicken thigh boneless, cut into bite size pieces
  • 1 white onion finely chopped
  • 5 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 green bell peppers chopped
  • 1 red bell peppers chopped
  • ½ inch galangal roughly sliced
  • 1 inch lemongrass roughly sliced
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 small jar Thai Panang curry paste measured to about 4 ½ tablespoons
  • 1 tablespoon unsweetened peanut butter
  • 2 teaspoon fish sauce
  • 1 pinch nutmeg powder optional
  • Salt to taste if required
  • 2 teaspoon palm sugar or brown sugar
  • 6-8 kaffir lime leave crushed
  • 1 can (14 oz) coconut milk
  • ¼ cup Thai basil leaves

Instructions
 

  • Heat skillet or deep bottom pan. Add coconut oil and wait until oil melts.
  • Sauté finely chopped onions in hot coconut oil until onion is translucent.
  • Add roughly chopped galangal, lemon grass.
  • Add minced garlic, red and green bell peppers. Cook for 2 minutes constantly stirring.
  • Push veggies to one side of the pan. Add washed and cleaned chicken things. Cook until chicken browns a bit and changes colour.
  • Mix chicken and veggies together. Continue cooking it for a minute more.
  • Again gather chicken veggie mix to one side of the pan. Scoop out Thai Panang curry paste ( or Thai red curry paste) to empty side of pan. Stir the paste and fry it in oil. Wait until oil separates from the paste. Pro-Tip : Do not skip frying curry paste in oil. Flavors cone out and curry turns delicious with this step.
  • Stir in unsweetened peanut butter, fish sauce and palm sugar. Nutmeg powder to be added now if using. 
    Take Kaffir lime leaves on your palm and crush it. Add crushed kaffir lime leaves to the pan. 
    Note - If you can’t get palm sugar , substitute with brown sugar or jaggery.  Crushing kaffir lime leaves helps release its wonderful aromatic oil, making Panang curry flavorsome.
  • Cook stirring regularly for 2 minutes.
  • Simmer flame. Pour in thick coconut milk. Give it a good stir.
  • Let it cook for 5-7 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.
  • Add few Thai basil leaves. Stir.
  • Turn off flame. Thai Chicken Panang Curry is ready.
  • It’s great when served with steamed jasmine rice.
  • You can also serve Thai Panang curry with rice noodles.

Video

Notes

  1. Fry Curry Paste - Essential step to make a good curry with great taste is frying curry paste in oil. Fry curry until you see oil separates from the curry paste.
  2. Kaffir Lime - Crushing kaffir lime leaves will release all it’s aromatic oil to the curry. Crush leaves before adding to curry.
  3. Peanut Allergy? Panang curry has peanuts in it. If you allergic to peanuts, you may want to avoid this curry or leave out adding peanut butter in the recipe.
  4. Fish Sauce - Add it as per taste. Before adding fish sauce taste curry and if it's too salty, adjust the amount of fish sauce to be added to the curry. 
  5. Coconut Oil - I prefer to use coconut oil.
  6. Spicier Curry - The recipe makes medium spicy curry. Spice tolerance levels varies greatly for every palate. If you want to make it more spicier, use curry paste that is spicy enough or use 1 or 2 birds eye chili in the recipe. 
  7. Palm Sugar Substitute - If you can’t get palm sugar , substitute with brown sugar or jaggery.
 
Nutritional Info – Please keep in mind that nutritional information provided is only a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

Nutrition

Calories: 460kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 21gFat: 38gSaturated Fat: 21gCholesterol: 111mgSodium: 271mgPotassium: 534mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 860IUVitamin C: 44.4mgCalcium: 35mgIron: 3.6mg
Did you make this recipe?Follow @CurryTrail and tag #CurryTrail to share your creation!
best Thai chicken Panang curry with text overlay
best Thai chicken Panang curry with text overlay
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    Comments & Reviews

  1. Cherie Krutilek says

    February 27, 2023 at 3:17 am

    If using beef, do follow the same instructions as with the chicken? Thanks 😊

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      February 27, 2023 at 2:02 pm

      I haven’t tested with beef, but my wild guess would be, yes with cooking time needs to be adjusted.

      Reply
  2. Dani says

    October 15, 2022 at 10:35 am

    5 stars
    This recipe came out amazingly well! Tastes 100% authentic! Made the paste from scratch from the ingredients listed, beyond perfect! I highly recommend you give this panang a try!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      October 18, 2022 at 8:11 pm

      I’m so glad to hear you are loving this curry Dani, thank you!

      Reply
  3. Mrs L A James says

    October 07, 2022 at 11:10 am

    Thai Parang Curry Chicken is delicious. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      October 10, 2022 at 12:19 pm

      Glad to know you liked the curry!

      Reply
  4. Sonali says

    September 28, 2022 at 11:55 am

    5 stars
    Amazing! No other recipe I’ve read so far recommended peanut butter. I’m so glad I made this one for meal prep this week

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      October 06, 2022 at 10:51 pm

      So glad you loved my recipe, thank you!

      Reply
  5. koen says

    August 22, 2022 at 8:18 pm

    5 stars
    This is so seriously good, thank you very much!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      August 23, 2022 at 4:08 pm

      So glad you loved the recipe Koen! Thank you.

      Reply
  6. Alex Baker says

    July 12, 2022 at 12:37 pm

    5 stars
    This has been my go to recipe for the past year as my efforts were terrible. This is the closest to a restaurant Penang Curry I you can make at home.

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      July 21, 2022 at 2:33 pm

      Thank you so much, so glad you are loving the recipe

      Reply
  7. Jeanne Brown says

    March 28, 2022 at 7:15 am

    Can this be frozen and thawed/reheated with fresh batch of noodles?

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      March 29, 2022 at 9:07 pm

      I usually cook noodles separately. I never freeze rice or noodles. But Thai curry itself can be frozen and stored. To reheat thaw it in the refrigerator and reheat it on the stove top or in the microwave.

      Reply
  8. Laura Zambrano says

    February 28, 2022 at 4:32 am

    5 stars
    I will definitely make this again and again! It tastes so fresh like every Thai dish I’ve eaten. This is just as good as eating at a good Thai restaurant. You won’t be disappointed!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      February 28, 2022 at 10:47 am

      I’m so glad you loved the curry Laura. Thank you for sharing your feedback!

      Reply
  9. Sarah says

    October 20, 2021 at 6:29 am

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious! I followed the recipe exactly and wouldn’t change a thing. My family loved it too!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      October 20, 2021 at 6:54 am

      So glad you loved it

      Reply
  10. Keri Anne Hall says

    September 16, 2021 at 5:20 am

    5 stars
    I have never made curry before, but i love it. This recipe tastes just like at a resturaunt, but feels better because I made it at home .My parents loved it and so do i! Thank you for sharing🥰😍

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      September 17, 2021 at 8:18 am

      Glad you liked it

      Reply
  11. Jc says

    May 28, 2021 at 6:20 am

    5 stars
    So good! I actually added 2 cans of coconut milk cause I went a little too much in the Panang. It was amazing!!!!!!!!!! This recipie was easy, clear to follow and delish. Thank you so very much!!!!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      May 28, 2021 at 12:20 pm

      I’m so glad to hear you loved the recipe! Thank you!

      Reply
  12. Desirae says

    March 20, 2021 at 7:20 am

    5 stars
    This was so good! My 10 year old daughter had seconds (which she rarely does) and we are making it again a week later. We made our own panang paste for extra authenticity! Added extra veggies too.

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      March 20, 2021 at 5:11 pm

      I’m so glad to hear your daughter had her seconds and loved it. Thank you very much for sharing!

      Reply
  13. KIMBO says

    February 21, 2021 at 12:46 am

    5 stars
    Made this many times-a crowd pleaser!!
    Great way to introduce food skeptics to a new cuisine.
    Rich flavors and super easy.

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      February 21, 2021 at 1:00 pm

      So glad you loved the recipe! Thank you!

      Reply
  14. Nikki says

    February 20, 2021 at 10:18 am

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      February 20, 2021 at 4:43 pm

      SO glad you loved the recipe

      Reply
  15. Nina Gorges says

    January 10, 2021 at 7:28 am

    5 stars
    Thank you for the amazing recipe! My boyfriend and I prepared it this evening. We made a few changes. Instead of peanut butter we used powdered peanut butter, lite coconut milk and pan spray instead of coconut oil to save on calories. We had it with brown rice and it was so tasty and delicious. I will def give it a try next time with the ingredients you recommended. Thank you again.

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      January 10, 2021 at 8:44 pm

      So glad you are loving the recipe Nina

      Reply
  16. Jonathan says

    January 10, 2021 at 7:28 am

    5 stars
    Excellent flavor. Great instructions. It was basically a one pan meal. I was able to reduce the 38g fat to 16 by using lite coconut milk, pan spray instead of oil, and powdered peanut butter. I imagine my sauce wasn’t as thick but it still had a nice mouth feel and serving it over brown rice you’d never know.

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      January 10, 2021 at 8:44 pm

      So glad you are loving the recipe

      Reply
  17. Susan Dubose says

    January 04, 2021 at 9:49 am

    5 stars
    Unbelievably fast and so delicious!!

    Reply
    • Jyothi Rajesh says

      January 04, 2021 at 11:12 am

      Susan so glad you love the recipe. Thank you for sharing

      Reply
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Jyothi - Author of Curry Trail.

Welcome, I'm Jyothi

My food philosophy is simple, fresh and full of flavors! I love ‘spicy’ food. In fact so much so that I can skip dessert for extra spicy savory food!

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