Red Curry Chicken and Rice Bowls

By Ali Slagle

Published December 23, 2025

Rachel Vanni for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Spencer Richards.
Ready In
1 hr
Rating
4(213)
Comments
Read comments

This cozy yet reviving rice bowl pairs Thai red curry-stained rice with tender chicken and a citrusy slaw. To fire up the red curry paste, toast it with the raw rice before adding broth. Then, place chicken breasts on top of the rice, where they will steam tender. While the rice rests, mix together a salad with a nuoc cham-inspired dressing, pre-shredded slaw blend, citrus, peanuts and herbs. 

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • 1½ cups long-grain white rice

  • 2 tablespoons to ⅓ cup Thai red curry paste, to taste

  • 2 cups chicken broth

  • 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, patted dry

  • 3 garlic cloves

  • 2 limes

  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce, plus more to taste

  • 4 tangerines or other small, sweet citrus

  • ⅓ cup salted peanuts

  • 12 to 16 ounces slaw blend

  • 1 cup cilantro or mint leaves, or a mix

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

76 grams carbs; 129 milligrams cholesterol; 632 calories; 5 grams monosaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 13 grams fat; 4 grams fiber; 701 milligrams sodium; 51 grams protein; 6 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a large Dutch oven over medium, add the rice and red curry paste to taste. Stir until fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes. 

  2. Step 2

    Stir in the broth. Place the chicken breasts on top, spread the tops of the breasts with a little more red curry paste, then bring to a boil over high. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until the rice is tender and the chicken is cooked through, 20 to 23 minutes. (Make sure to look under the chicken to see if the rice is cooked.) Turn off the heat, transfer the chicken to a cutting board, then cover the rice and let both rest for at least 10 minutes. 

  3. Step 3

    While the rice rests, into a large bowl, finely grate the garlic and zest of the limes. Add the juices of the limes and the fish sauce. Peel the tangerines and thinly slice. Add to the bowl. Coarsely chop the peanuts. Add the slaw, peanuts and herbs to the dressing and toss to coat.

  4. Step 4

    Thinly slice the chicken. Season the rice to taste with fish sauce. Eat the rice with the chicken and slaw.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
213 user ratings
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Comments

Dave Holland

I found this dish to be quite dry. I had to scale it for 6 people but it still could have used more of the lime juice dressing. Would consider some flavor added to the slaw as well otherwise it simply adds another dry factor. Overall taste was quite nice.

JennyG

@Dan M the recipe says to toss the tangerines, peanuts, slaw, and herbs with the dressing.

Max

I really enjoy Thai food and I have overwhelmingly positive results from the NYT cooking app. But this one was a miss. The chicken takes longer to cook than the recipe states. But cooking the rice longer results in the rice becoming paste. Would recommend cooking chicken and rice separately. The zest of two limes was too much and overpowered the slaw.

Claudia

My rice wasn’t cooked through (kind of crunchy) but the chicken was juicy and delicious. We all enjoyed the recipe. Will make it again but will cook the rice a bit before adding the chicken.

Carleigh

This recipe needs to be tested again n. Rice stuck to the bottom of the pot but chicken breasts were raw in the middle even after I cut them in half before cooking. Just overall really poor.

Wisconsin Cheesehead

This was very, very good. The slaw, peanuts, fish sauce and I added some avocado were a great addition. This was a light comforting winter meal.

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