Cheesy Vegetarian
Quick Red Thai Curry Noodle Soup
Get dinner on the table in just 15 minutes with this quick and easy red Thai curry noodle soup! You’ll need just 4 ingredients for this seriously flavourful dinner.
You know what makes me feel like a superhero? Getting dinner on the table in 15 minutes… especially when it contains plenty of fresh veg! And that’s just the case with this quick and easy red Thai curry noodle soup. It needs just 4 main ingredients, tossed together in a pan, to create a dinner that’s full of flavour and full of goodness.
Red Thai curry noodle soup
Red Thai curry is one of my all-time favourite Asian dishes.
It’s got a nice amount of spice but it isn’t overwhelming, and isn’t overly heavy unlike some other types of curry. It’s more of a sweet and fragrant spice, rather than anything too rich.
Thai curry sauce is usually fairly thin, which is why it’s so easy to adapt any Thai curry to serve it as a soup!
What are the 4 ingredients in this noodle soup?
Okay, so I’ve taken a few liberties with counting the ingredients in this recipe, but here’s what you’ll need to make this insanely tasty soup:
- fresh vegetables (I used a shop-bought mixture of stir fry veggies, so I could literally just empty the bag straight into the wok – no peeling or chopping required)
- Thai curry paste (I always keep a jar in the cupboard as it’s just the thing for a quick, tasty dinner!)
- canned coconut milk
- noodles (I used fresh egg noodles that don’t require any pre-cooking)
If you’ve got these 4 things, you can have this Thai curry noodle soup on the table within about 15 minutes. So, so easy!
Quick and easy dinner
If you’re one of those people who cooks everything from scratch, I know that my short cuts might make you raise an eyebrow at this recipe. I enjoy making things from scratch (e.g. my homemade enchilada sauce), but I’d be lying if I said I don’t sometimes prefer the easier option.
And to be honest, there are all sorts of benefits to using shop-bought ingredient short cuts:
- it cuts down on prep time dramatically
- it also helps to keep costs down (it’s much cheaper to buy a £2 jar of curry paste than to buy the ingredients individually!)
- it makes the end result more reliably delicious (why faff around with unfamiliar ingredients when someone who actually knows what they’re doing has already done it?)
- it makes me more likely to cook a veg-packed dinner, since I know it can be done quickly and easily
Is this an authentic Thai recipe?
No, it’s not. I am not Thai, and I make no claims that this recipe is remotely traditional.
But sometimes food doesn’t need to be an authentic glimpse into another culture – sometimes it can just be something you enjoy eating. And I very much enjoy eating food that tastes incredible, is full of fresh veggies, and only takes 15 minutes to prepare.
How to make red Thai curry noodle soup
Step 1: Stir fry some mixed vegetables
The bag of stir fry vegetables that I bought contained a mixture of cabbage, yellow pepper, red onion, and carrots – but any similar stir fry selection will do just fine.
Of course, if you’d prefer to choose your vegetables individually, you can absolutely do this, but it will obviously take quite a bit longer to prepare them all one by one.
Sometimes I use a combination of the two methods – I’ll start with a bag of mixed vegetables to speed things along, but also add anything extra that I particularly want to include, like a handful of mushrooms or some baby corn.
Stir fry the vegetables for just a few minutes to get them going – you still want them to retain some crunch.
Step 2: Add the red Thai curry paste
Add a few big dollops of Thai curry paste to the pan. It’s up to you how much you add – if you want a milder, creamier noodle soup, just use one or two tablespoons. Or, if you really want your soup to pack a punch, use three or four.
Some shop-bought curry pastes aren’t vegetarian, as they contain fish sauce, so make sure you choose appropriately.
In the UK at least, I find that the supermarket own brands are usually vegetarian, whereas more expensive brands aren’t. I imagine this is because when they’re trying to keep costs down, fish sauce is the first ingredient to go!
Step 3: Add fresh noodles and coconut milk
You can use any kind of noodle you like – I used egg noodles, but of course you can choose a vegan noodle if needed. I prefer to use the ones that can be thrown straight into the wok, rather than dried noodles, which will need pre-boiling.
Gently stir everything together until the coconut milk melts down, and combines with the curry paste to give a rich and creamy curry sauce. It’s absolutely incredible.
You can add a splash of water if you like, if you want to make your soup more… well, soupy. Otherwise, you’re all done!
What vegetables can you use in Thai noodle soup?
Honestly, there are so many vegetables that would work well in this sort of noodle soup that it might actually be quicker to list the veggies that wouldn’t work so well. But here are some of my favourite vegetables to use:
- cabbage
- onion (red or white)
- carrot
- mange tout
- baby corn
- peppers (red, yellow or green)
- mushrooms
- pak choi
- broccoli
- courgette (zucchini)
Choose as many different colours and textures as you can! I love the pre-prepared vegetable mixes, as you can get a lot of variety with very little effort.
I like stir fries to retain a bit of crunch, so I try not to choose veggies that get too soft and soggy. They just need a few minutes in the pan to soften a little, while still having a great texture.
How else could you adapt the recipe?
The brilliant thing about using such simple ingredients is that it’s so easy to swap things in and out of the recipe.
If you don’t fancy noodles, throw in some leftover rice (or a sachet of pre-cooked rice) instead.
Add a tin of chickpeas or some fried tofu for extra protein.
Skip the additional water for a thicker, less soupy curry.
There are all sorts of ways you can make this recipe your own, and it will always be quick to make, and absolutely delicious.
Quick Red Thai Curry Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp oil
- 300 g (~ 2/3 lb) mixed stir-fry vegetables (I used a shop-bought mix of cabbage, carrot, pepper and red onion, but you can use whatever combination you like)
- 2 – 3 Tbsp red Thai curry paste (make sure it’s vegetarian)
- 400 ml (~ 1 1/2 cups) canned coconut milk
- 300 g (~ 2/3 lb) fresh noodles (I used egg noodles)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 250 ml (~ 1 cup) water or vegetable stock (optional)
- Fresh coriander (cilantro), to garnish (optional)
Instructions
-
Heat the oil in a large pan (a wok is ideal), and add the mixed vegetables. Cook over a medium heat, stirring regularly, for 4-5 minutes, until just beginning to soften.
-
Add the curry paste (the quantity can be adjusted depending on how spicy you’d like it), the coconut milk, and the fresh noodles. Season with plenty of black pepper, and stir gently until the ingredients come together to make a smooth sauce. Simmer for 5 more minutes, or until the sauce is piping hot, and the noodles and vegetables are cooked to your liking.
-
To make the dish more soupy, and to stretch it to feed more people, you can add some extra water or vegetable stock – or, serve it as is. You can serve topped with fresh coriander (cilantro), if you like.
Notes
Green Thai curry paste would also work well.
Nutrition
Calories from Fat 268
Note: Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on exactly what ingredients you choose. Information above is for 1/3 of the recipe.
If you love a quick and easy dinner, try my 15 minute mushroom stroganoff!
The post Quick Red Thai Curry Noodle Soup appeared first on Easy Cheesy Vegetarian.
Cheesy Vegetarian
Creamy Three Bean Stew
This creamy three bean stew is the ideal healthy comfort food – with fresh veg and three types of beans, in a luxurious creamy tomato sauce!
This creamy three bean stew is basically my perfect dinner. It feels like a luxurious, comforting meal, but is packed with fresh vegetables and protein-rich beans (three kinds, in case you couldn’t have guessed) – all coated in a creamy, silky sauce with heaps of flavour (swoooon).
It ticks all the boxes!
Healthy comfort food
Veggie-packed comfort food has got to be my all-time favourite food category, and it doesn’t get much better than this creamy three bean stew. It’s absolutely full of goodness, but is about as far from rabbit food as you can get (I’ve never been much of a salad person).
After eating a meal like this, you feel totally satisfied, and your body thanks you too.
What’s in this creamy three bean stew?
There are 3 main elements to this hearty vegetarian stew:
- the vegetables – I chose carrots, courgette (zucchini) and mushrooms
- the beans – three different types! I used black beans, kidney beans and cannellini beans
- the sauce – made with tomatoes, creamy tomato soup, and an extra dollop of cream for good measure
As long as you make sure your bean stew contains these three elements, it will be a success – even if you decide to switch things up a bit (see below for some ideas for how to adapt the recipe!).
How to make creamy three bean stew
Step 1: Fry off the vegetables
Start by dicing your veggies, and adding them to a large saucepan. Cook them for a few minutes until they’re just starting to soften.
Step 2: Add most of the remaining ingredients
We’re already at the ‘add everything else’ stage – this recipe really couldn’t get much simpler.
Add the beans and sauce ingredients to the pan, and leave everything to simmer for a little while, until the sauce has thickened nicely and the vegetables and beans are totally soft.
Step 3: Make it extra creamy
As a little finishing touch, I like to add one more little dollop of something to make it extra creamy. To be honest, there are lots of ingredients you could use for this purpose, which would all have pretty much the same effect:
- cream
- sour cream
- Greek yogurt
- cream cheese
Just be careful if you’re using the low fat version of any of these ingredients, as low fat dairy products can sometimes split and curdle in this kind of situation.
It’s best to stick to the full fat version if you can, or if you really want to use low fat, temper the ingredient first. To do this, mix a spoonful of your hot stew into the yogurt (or whatever you’re using) first, then add it all back into the pot. This helps to minimise the temperature shock, and reduces the risk of curdling.
The difference that one good dollop of sour cream had on my three bean stew was really pretty amazing:
It makes the whole thing so much more luxurious, and transforms a simple bean stew into something seriously tempting.
How to serve three bean stew
This stew already contains all the most important food groups, so there’s no need to serve anything alongside it if you don’t want to. Just a nice big bowl and a spoon are all you need.
Personally though, I think a bit of garlic bread or some crusty bread and butter are absolutely perfect for mopping up the bowl and adding a nice bit of crunch…
How to adapt the recipe
One of the best things about this recipe is that it’s endlessly adaptable – it’s such a good fridge clearer. I would be willing to bet that almost all of you could make this three bean stew entirely from ingredients you already have in the house.
Who doesn’t already have a cupboard full of random tins of beans? And a fridge full of veggies that could do with being used up?
Just chuck ’em all in – the more the merrier.
You could choose different vegetables, different beans, or adjust the sauce ingredients, and you’ll almost certainly still end up with a really tasty meal. In fact, it’s pretty fun if it ends up slightly different each time you make it.
Creamy Three Bean Stew
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 onion, sliced or diced
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium courgette (zucchini), diced
- ~ 5 medium mushrooms, diced
- 400 g tin cannellini beans, drained (240g, or ~ 1 1/4 cups, when drained)
- 400 g tin black beans, drained (240g, or ~ 1 1/4 cups, when drained)
- 400 g tin kidney beans, drained (240g, or ~ 1 1/4 cups, when drained)
- 400 g (~ 1⅓ cups) tinned tomatoes
- 400 g (~ 1 1/3 cups) tin cream of tomato soup
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 vegetable stock cube, crumbled
- 2 tbsp cream, cream cheese, sour cream or Greek yogurt (full fat versions)
- Small bunch fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
Instructions
-
Heat a dash of oil in a large saucepan, and add the diced onion and carrot. Cook over a medium heat for a few minutes, stirring regularly, until the onion has softened slightly. Add the garlic, courgette and mushrooms, and cook for a further 5 minutes, until the vegetables are beginning to soften.
-
Add the three drained tins of beans, tin of tomatoes, and tin of tomato soup. Also add the oregano and black pepper, along with a crumbled stock cube (or just some salt, if you prefer).
-
Bring to a simmer, and cook for around 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has reduced to produce a thick sauce.
-
Add the cream, mix to combine, and serve warm, garnished with fresh parsley if desired.
Notes
It’s best to use full fat dairy products for cooking, as low fat varieties tend to split and curdle when added to heat. If you really need to use a low fat dairy ingredient, temper it before adding it to the stew. To do this, mix one spoonful of the hot stew into the low fat yogurt (or whatever it is), and stir it together. Then add it back into the stew. This reduces the temperature shock to the yogurt, and minimises the risk of curdling.
Nutrition
Calories from Fat 67
Note: Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on exactly what ingredients you choose. Information above is for 1/4 of the recipe.
Love healthy comfort food? My veggie-packed slow cooker black bean soup is perfect:
The post Creamy Three Bean Stew appeared first on Easy Cheesy Vegetarian.
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