Easy Yellow Fish Curry

This Yellow Fish Curry recipe is loaded with super moist chunks of cod, and green and red bell peppers drenched in a creamy, silky yellow curry. This restaurant-worthy meal brings home the spice, is perfect for the entire family, and can be prepared in less than 30 minutes.

Close up of yellow fish curry served with white rice in a black bowl

Thai Fish Curry is a popular dish found in Southern Thai cuisine. The Mrs. is a huge fan and orders it whenever she can — so I knew at some point she would request a homecooked version. This recipe was most definitely spawned from her love for Thai food.

This curry is best when enjoyed cradled under, beside, or on top of tender rice. In central and southern Thailand, jasmine rice is the preferred type. But you can also use basmati, white, or brown rice.

bowl of yellow fish curry

And a great yellow curry starts with a homemade yellow curry paste. Yellow curry paste has quite a bit of turmeric powder in it. Compared to green and red curries, yellow curry is milder and doesn’t contain as many chili peppers (resulting in a curry that is not as spicy as its counterparts). It goes great with chicken or other types of seafood.

Creamy coconut milk is the base for a robust and spicy Thai yellow curry paste. It will create an aroma throughout your home that will have everyone anticipating their first bite! This recipe makes an impression.

Ingredients you’ll need to make yellow fish curry:

  • This is a fish dish, so fresh fish is always best! I prefer to use fresh cod loin fish filets seasoned with salt, pepper, and ground cumin. Cod’s texture makes it the best fish for curry. They are seasoned simply and the hint of sweetness from the fish blends perfectly with the curry.
  • The core of this dish is the homemade curry paste. This yellow curry paste consists of shallots, garlic, olive oil, turmeric, cinnamon, curry, salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, lemongrass paste, minced ginger, coriander, and of course, Thai dried chili peppers. The number of peppers used in your paste will control your heat. The more peppers you add, the spicier it will be. For a mild spice, use 3 peppers, and to pack the heat go with 10 peppers. Feel free to settle somewhere in the middle based on your preference.
  • The diced green and red bell peppers will add a nice color and flavor to the curry recipe.
  • Using coconut milk will transform your yellow curry paste into a silky texture. It is what brings this entire dish together. Coconut cream can be used as well to make it even creamier.
  • Curry dishes are great served with rice.
Two bowls of yellow fish curry

How to make easy fish curry:

Make the yellow curry paste. You will create this quick and easy recipe by making the yellow curry paste. Add your shallot, garlic cloves, Thai dried chili peppers, lemongrass paste, minced ginger, and other curry paste seasonings into a food processor (paid link) while slowly pouring the olive oil in as everything blends together. The yellow curry paste should have a slightly moist consistency similar to canned tomato paste.

Prepare the fish. Chop your cod loin filet into large cubes and season evenly with salt, pepper, and ground cumin.

Prepare the vegetables. Remove the stem and seeds from the green and red bell peppers and cut them into coarsely chopped pieces.

Make the yellow curry sauce. Heat a large sauté pan to medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of butter. Cook the red and green peppers together for 5 minutes. Add the yellow curry paste to the pan and stir together, cooking for 1 to 2 minutes before pouring the coconut milk into the pan.

Add fish and complete. Stir ingredients until everything combines, then add the chopped fish into the pan. Cover and cook for 10 to 12 minutes at a slightly lower heat, stirring occasionally. Top off with sugar and salt as a finishing touch.

Serve. Serve over jasmine rice.

Just the thought of making a curry dish can make a person feel a little intimidated, but I’m here to say this recipe is super easy to whip up! Go ahead and bring a Thai dining experience to your dinner table by adding this Thai Yellow Fish Curry dish to the menu. The flavors alone will satisfy even the pickiest eater.

Love seafood? You should also try my Salmon Poke Bowl with Spicy Mayo, Honey Balsamic Steelhead Trout, Baked Flounder with Pontchartrain Sauce, Creamy Tuscan Steelhead Trout, and Honey Mustard Glazed Salmon.

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bowl of yellow fish curry

Easy Yellow Fish Curry


5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

  • Author: Eric Jones
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Description

This Yellow Fish Curry recipe is loaded with super moist chunks of cod and green and red bell peppers drenched in a silky yellow curry sauce.


Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 36 Thai dried chili peppers
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 whole shallot
  • 1 tbsp minced ginger
  • 1 tbsp lemongrass paste
  • 3 tsp ground turmeric
  • 3 tsp ground curry
  • 3 tsp ground cumin, separated
  • 2 tsp black pepper, separated
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt, separated
  • 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 lb. cod loin fish filet, cubed
  • 1/2 cup green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 cup red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
  • 15 oz. coconut milk
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • cooked rice, optional


Instructions

  1. Add the Thai dried chili peppers, garlic cloves, shallot, minced ginger, lemongrass paste, ground turmeric, ground curry, 2 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp black pepper, ground coriander, garlic powder, 1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt, ground cinnamon into a food processor (paid link) and blend while slowly pouring in the olive oil until it turns into a paste.
  2. Season the cod evenly with 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp black pepper, and 1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt.
  3. Heat a large sauté pan to medium heat, then add butter, red bell peppers, and green bell peppers, allowing them to cook for 5 minutes until tender.
  4. Add the yellow curry paste to the pan. Mix and cook for 1 to 2 minutes before adding the coconut milk. Stir until all ingredients are well blended.
  5. Add fish into the pan and slightly lower heat to medium-low. Cover and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sugar and 1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt, then stir.
  6. Serve with rice.
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: Stove Top
  • Cuisine: Thai

Nutrition

  • Calories: 499
  • Sugar: 6.3g
  • Sodium: 645mg
  • Fat: 31.9g
  • Carbohydrates: 50.4g
  • Fiber: 4.3g
  • Protein: 6.8g
  • Cholesterol: 15mg

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3 Comments

  1. Beck and Bulow says:

    Just wanted you to know that I’ve included your recipe in a collection of Irish foods on Simple Living and Eating. I will be pinning and tweeting it this week too.






  2. This curry is amazing. I’ve never made my own curry paste before, and it was so worth it. This recipe made it easy. It’s a very versatile dish, too. We used Pacific Cod, and it was delicious. But I’m planning to try this with shrimp, too. Very complementary to seafood flavor. We love heat so used all 6 chiles and seeds, but there is so much flavor in this that it would be just as delicious if you wanted to use fewer chiles.






    1. Eric Jones says:

      Hi Margaret! Thanks so much! And I agree…this dish is so versatile. We use this curry paste for so many recipes.