Thai Green Curry Chicken (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker)

This Thai Green Curry Chicken recipe is an easy way to make flavorful lunches or a quick weeknight dinner. Tender, fall-apart chicken breasts cooked in coconut milk, Thai green curry paste, and some garlic, you can easily adapt this recipe to add any vegetable of your choice for an easy meal. You can have this meal prep or dinner ready in about 30 minutes in an Instant Pot or set it and forget it in a slow cooker for a couple of hours before dinner!

This creamy, savory, slightly spicy Thai chicken curry makes for a mouthwatering meal. The coconut milk mellows the heat from the green curry paste while adding richness to the sauce, so that you end up with an easy weeknight dinner that you will want to make on repeat.

 

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• The creamy coconut milk makes for such a luscious sauce that is perfect for serving with a big helping of jasmine rice to soak it all up. It is so flavorful, I could drink it!
• I love making this Instant Pot Thai green curry on busy nights. The hardest part about the recipe is probably taking the time to shred the chicken! It is easily adapted so I’m able to add different vegetables to the dish so I can use it to help clear out any odds and ends in the fridge or freezer.
• The recipe uses a base of 5 ingredients that I almost always have on hand! This means I can make it last minute when I don’t have dinner or lunch planned.

Ingredients You’ll Need

chicken breasts — I usually use chicken breasts, but you can also use chicken thighs. The beauty about this recipe is that I can always add extra chicken to it without having to adjust the liquids, so I can pack up extra for lunches for the next few days. Or simply add more coconut milk!

garlic — the more garlic, the merrier, in my books! I’ve used both minced and whole cloves, so you can decide and use what you have on hand.

coconut milk — make sure you are using full-fat coconut milk, as it provides a rich texture and concentrated flavor that light coconut milk cannot match, especially as the base of the curry. I like this AROY-D one.

green curry paste — this AROY-D one is the exact curry paste I use. There is a slight kick to this, so I would recommend not using too much if you are sensitive to heat. However, you can definitely add extra if you want more flavor!

lime — just a splash of lime to add a bright, acid flavor to cut through the creamy sauce.

vegetables — this is optional but I love to add vegetables to my Thai green curry. I like to add snow peas, peas, bell peppers, potatoes, and more! If you add quick-cook vegetables like snow peas and peas, I highly recommend adding them at the end, as the residual heat or a quick sauté can cook them through. For something hearty like potatoes, I would dice them up into bite-sized pieces and add them to the Instant Pot before pressure cooking.

How to Make Instant Pot Coconut Thai Curry Chicken

• To a 6QT Instant Pot, add the chicken breasts, garlic, green curry paste, and coconut milk. If you want to add hearty vegetables such as onions, diced potatoes, or sweet potatoes, add them now.
• Stir everything, put the Instant Pot lid on, set the valve to sealing, and set the timer to pressure cook on HIGH for 12 to 13 minutes.
• Once the timer goes off, you can let the pot come down naturally if you are not in a rush or do a quick release. I like doing a natural release as I’m usually not in the kitchen right as it finishes and I find the extra few minutes makes the chicken more tender to shred.
• Remove the chicken to shred. If you are adding quick-cooking vegetables such as snow peas, snap peas, peas, broccoli, bell peppers, or spinach, turn on sauté mode and add them to the liquid inside the pot.
• Once the vegetables have cooked and the chicken has shredded, add the chicken back to the pot to coat it with the curry sauce and finish off with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

How to Make this Coconut Thai Curry Chicken in a Slow Cooker

• To the slow cooker, add the garlic, green curry paste, and coconut milk. Stir to combine.
• Add the chicken breasts to the slow cooker, making sure they’re submerged. If you want to add hearty vegetables such as onions, diced potatoes, or sweet potatoes, add them now.
• Cook on HIGH for 2 to 4 hours (or low for 6 hours).
• If you are adding quick-cooking vegetables such as snow peas, snap peas, peas, broccoli, bell peppers, or spinach, add them to the slow cooker in the last 10 or so minutes to cook through.
• Remove the chicken to shred. Add it back to the slow cooker to coat them in the sauce and finish off with fresh lime.

Recipe Variations

• Here are some vegetables that I’ve had success with adding to this curry in the past: broccoli, frozen peas, snap peas, snow peas, sliced bell peppers, diced potatoes, spinach, cauliflower, and onions.
• You can increase the heat of the curry by adding a sprinkling of red pepper flakes.
• I usually serve this coconut Thai green curry with rice, but noodles, such as thick udon noodles, work well too.

Recipe Tips

• It is okay if everything isn’t mixed well in the Instant Pot, as it will all melt together perfectly, courtesy of the Instant Pot!
• If you have extra coconut milk, try making my coconut lime rice! You can also make it in the Instant Pot ahead of time.
• The slower and lower you cook this in the slow cooker, the more tender your chicken. It is also why I personally prefer a natural release on the Instant Pot but some nights call for a quick release for a speedy meal!

Make Ahead Tips

• Meal prep: once cooled, store in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge. If possible, use a meal prep container with compartments so that the sauce doesn’t all get absorbed by the rice (if you are serving with rice). Or pack your rice separately. I don’t mind, so I put it all in one container. Reheat in the microwave.
• Freezer: allow the shredded chicken to cool before transferring the chicken along with the curry sauce into an airtight container before storing them in the freezer. Store for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.

More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

Here are some more chicken recipes you can quickly make in the Instant Pot that also can double as a meal prep!

• Instant Pot Shredded Hawaiian Chicken
• Instant Pot Chicken Teriyaki
• Instant Pot Lemon Garlic Chicken
• Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli
• Instant Pot Cashew Chicken

Other places to connect with me
@carmyshungry on Instagram
Facebook
Shop my Amazon faves
Email: [email protected]