This homemade vegan Thai green curry is better than takeout and easy enough for a weeknight! Packed with spicy Thai flavors, crispy pan-fried tofu and tender veggies in a creamy coconut milk base, this easy dinner will become a favorite that you'll want to make again and again.
A while back I posted a recipe for vegan green curry paste. It wouldn't be cool of me to share something like that and then not give you anything to do with it. You can't just eat curry paste for dinner. That would hurt!
Once you've got the paste down, curry recipes are almost too simple. For me, the toughest part is deciding what veggies to put into my curry, because you can use almost anything. For this vegan green curry I went with a mix of some favorites including asparagus, baby corn, and bell peppers, along with some pan-fried tofu for protein.
This Thai curry tastes like it came from a restaurant, but it's really super easy to make at home!
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Ingredients You'll Need
- Peanut oil. You can substitute another high-heat oil if you'd like, such as canola, coconut, or corn oil.
- Tofu. I recommend using either super firm or extra firm tofu for this recipe. If you use extra firm you'll need to press your tofu before cooking it.
- Green curry paste. Make sure the curry paste you're using is vegan, as many brands contain shrimp paste. Maesri is a good vegan brand if you like your curry with plenty of heat, and Thai kitchen is a good mild vegan brand. Or you can make homemade vegan green curry paste.
- Coconut milk. The recipe calls for one can of full-fat coconut milk and one can of light, but you could use all full-fat for an extra rich curry, or all light to reduce the fat content. Don't use coconut milk beverage, which is normally sold in cartons with other non-dairy milks.
- Fresh baby corn. Canned baby corn can be used if this isn't available.
- Asparagus.
- Red bell pepper.
- Brown sugar. Use organic sugar to keep the recipe vegan.
- Lime juice. Freshly squeezed juice will give your curry the best flavor.
- Salt.
- Fresh basil. Use Thai basil if you can get your hands on it. If not, Italian basil is fine.
- Cilantro. Leave this out if you're a cilantro hater.
- Cooked rice. I like my curry best with jasmine rice, but any variety will do.
Tip: Feel free to switch up the veggies with your favorites, keeping in mind that the cook times may need to be adjusted. Harder veggies generally take longer to cook, while softer veggies cook quicker. Broccoli, zucchini, green beans, cauliflower, sugar snap peas and carrots would all be delicious choices!
How It's Made
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
- Cook your tofu first. We're going to be pan-frying it using this method. Heat some oil in a nonstick skillet and cook tofu cubes for a few minutes until they're browned and crispy on multiple sides.
- While the tofu cooks, start on the curry. Heat up some oil in a large pot and add your curry paste. Sauté the paste briefly in the oil.
- Add your coconut milk to the pot, stir everything up, and bring the mixture to a boil. This is your green curry sauce.
- Add the baby corn and let it simmer for about 7 minutes. It should be starting to become tender, but not be quite there yet.
- Now stir in asparagus and chopped bell pepper. Let the curry keep simmering until the veggies are tender.
- Stir the brown sugar, lime juice, and cooked tofu into the pot, then remove it from heat.
- Stir in some basil and cilantro. Season your curry with salt to taste, and adjust any other seasonings to your liking.
- Serve the curry with some rice and enjoy!
Leftovers & Storage
Leftover vegan green curry will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 3 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is if your curry paste is gluten-free. Thai Kitchen brand is.
Green curry is known for being pretty spicy! Having said that, I find Thai kitchen's green curry paste to be pretty mild, so use it if you prefer a dish with less heat. Maesri brand is pretty hot (but delicious).
More Vegan Thai Curries
- Yellow Curry with Potatoes & Tofu
- Vegan Massaman Curry
- Spring Vegetable Thai Curry
- Butternut Squash Curry
- Red Curry Noodle Soup
Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!
Vegan Thai Green Curry with Tofu & Veggies
This homemade vegan Thai green curry is better than takeout and easy enough for a weeknight! Packed with spicy Thai flavors, crispy pan-fried tofu and tender veggies in a creamy coconut milk base, this easy dinner will become a favorite that you'll want to make again and again.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil, divided
- 1 (14 ounce) package extra firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cut into 1-inch cubes
- ¼ cup vegan green curry paste, or more to taste (I used ½ cup, but I like intense flavor. Note 1)
- 1 (14 ounce or 400 ml) can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 (14 ounce or 400 ml) can light coconut milk
- 2 cups fresh baby corn (Note 2), cut into 2-inch pieces
- ½ pound asparagus spears, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 small red bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon organic brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- Salt, to taste (I used ¾ teaspoon)
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- Cooked rice, for serving
Instructions
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Coat the bottom of a large nonstick skillet with 1 tablespoon of the oil and place it over medium heat.
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When the oil is hot, arrange the tofu cubes in a single layer in the skillet.
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Cook the tofu cubes for about 10 minutes, flipping them once or twice to achieve browning on multiple sides.
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Transfer the tofu to a plate when it's done cooking
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While the tofu cooks, coat the bottom of a large pot with the remaining tablespoon of oil and place it over medium heat.
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Give the oil a minute to heat up, and then stir in the curry paste.
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Sauté the curry paste for 1 to 2 minutes, until it becomes very fragrant.
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Stir in both cans of coconut milk. Raise the heat and bring the liquid to a simmer.
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Stir in the baby corn and let it simmer for about 7 minutes.
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Stir in the asparagus and bell pepper. Continue simmering for another 3 minutes, until the veggies are tender crisp and the asparagus has become bright green.
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Stir in the cooked tofu, brown sugar and lime juice.
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Remove the pot from heat and stir in the cilantro and basil. Season the curry with salt to taste and adjust any other seasonings to your preference.
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Divide onto plates or into bowls and serve with rice.
Recipe Notes
- If you're new to cooking with curry paste and not sure how much to use, I recommend starting with a smaller amount. Do a taste-test when the curry is finished, and if you find the curry to be a little bland, you can either (1) sauté a bit more paste in some oil then add it to the curry (don't add it raw), or (2) add more seasonings such as lime juice, cilantro, basil, salt and optionally some hot sauce to increase the flavor.
- Canned baby corn can be substituted if you can't find fresh, but you'll need to add it later during cooking. In step 9 simmer the coconut milk without the baby corn (to reduce the coconut milk a bit), then add the canned baby corn in step 10, along with the asparagus and pepper.
- Nutrition information does not include rice.
hands down the best coconut curry ive seen!!!!
This sounds divine!! I have an air fryer so I would toss the tofu cubes in that to crisp them up. Am going to have to try this recipe soon. Thank you for developing such wonderful dishes and sharing them with us. I can not cook with out a recipe so I am very thankful to those of you who develop yummy recipes.
Thanks Cheri! I'm glad you're enjoying the recipes! I'm itching to try out an air fryer and I'd love to hear how it works out with tofu if you try it!
So glad to find your vegan curry paste recipes and so glad to find this visually appealing website with vegan recipes that are easy to print! I'm going to try this recipe this week.
I recently was introduced to cashew cream and have now used it as a substitute for coconut milk in some recipes. I love the additional protein it lends to a dish. Have you ever tried that?
Thanks so much! I love cashew cream and have used in interchangably with coconut milk in some recipes, though not in a curry like this one. I hope you enjoy this!
This Thai vegan recipe is awesome and simple. Thanks for sharing. We are across the pond in Europe and sometimes the measurements are a challenge. Would it be too onerous to add metric measurement too. Here veganism is enjoying a massive growth and your website is a great resource, especially for newbies.
I'm so glad you like it! I actually just (last week) added a button below the ingredients list where you can switch between U.S. metric units. I haven't had time to add it to my old recipes yet, but it'll be showing up on the new ones. I hope that helps!
I made this and LOVED it, I like mine a bit more spicy so I added 2tbsp of curry powder and cayanne chili powder. Delish, definitely recommend.
Yay! So glad you like it!
I've made several times now and easily one of my top favorite recipes of all time. Tonight I doubled the recipe. I also blanched several veggies first - tonight's selection was broccoli, cauli, carrot, green beans, zucchini. Threw in the baby corn and bamboo shoots for variety. THANK YOU THANK YOU! !
This was amazing! So flavorful and delicious! I added green beans and a little carrot. My significant other, who is not vegan, had three helpings. We'll definitely be having it again!
This was yummmmmmy! I fried 2 teaspoons of flour to thicken it as it was too watery, but otherwise it was delicious!