Quick & Easy Red Curry Quinoa

I love Thai food, and especially red curries. I often make regular red curries at home, but yesterday, I made a quick and healthy red curry quinoa.

Red Curry Quinoa (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

This is a pretty basic recipe. The next time I make it, I will try to make it into a one-pot-meal, but as it is now, it’s still an easy recipe that is suitable as a weeknight meal.

Red Curry Quinoa (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

This isn’t very spicy, so if you like things hot, you’ll want to add some Sriracha sauce.

IMG_6014_600

While you can certainly make your own red curry paste, Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste is widely available and works well:

Thai Kitchen - Red Curry Paste

It’s vegan and gluten-free, and the best part is that the ingredients list is very straight-forward: Red Chili, Garlic, Lemongrass, Galangal (Thai Ginger), Salt, Onion, Kaffir Lime, Coriander, Pepper.

Thai Kitchen - Red Curry Paste

I used a mix of onions, carrots, red bell pepper (capsicum), and broccoli. But really, any colorful veggies will work, including eggplant, butternut squash/pumpkin, snow peas, green beans, mushrooms, etc…

Veggies

Updates – Red Curry Quinoa Recipe

April 8, 2013 – I just made this again tonight and realized that my liquid measurements were way off! This dish is not meant to be a traditional curry, so it should be a 3/4 cup of broth/water, not 1+1/3 cup. I’m updating the recipe below – thanks to everyone who commented on the “soupy” texture! I also increased the sugar to 2 tbsp to really bring out the flavor of the coconut milk.

November 25, 2013 – I found a vegan red curry paste from Ayam here in Australia. It tastes great, however unlike the Thai Kitchen one, it already contains sugar so it’s rather sweet. I’ve therefore added notes to the recipe below, indicating that you may need to adjust the sugar and spice of this recipe depending on your particular red curry paste.

Red Curry Quinoa (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

More super quick recipes you’ll love

Print

Quick & Easy Vegan Red Curry Quinoa

This Thai red curry quinoa dish can be made in less than 20 minutes! Vegan / Gluten-Free / Nut-Free

  • Author: Angela @ Vegangela.com
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 15 mins
  • Total Time: 20 mins
  • Yield: 2 1x
  • Category: Main, Curry
  • Cuisine: Thai, Asian

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup quinoa
  • 1 (400ml) can coconut milk
  • 3/4 cup vegetable broth (or water)
  • 23 tbsp vegan red curry paste (see note)
  • 2 tbsp raw sugar (or brown sugar) (optional – see note)
  • 1 tbsp Sriracha sauce or 1 tsp crushed red chili pepper (optional – see note)
  • 1 tsp coconut or vegetable oil
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 3 cups colorful veggies (onions, carrots, red bell pepper, broccoli, etc)

Garnish

  • Fresh basil and/or cilantro (coriander) (optional)

Instructions

  1. In a medium saucepan, mix quinoa, coconut milk, vegetable broth, red curry paste, sugar, and Sriracha sauce / red chili flakes (if using). Bring to boil, then lower heat to lowest setting and cover saucepan. Simmer until the quinoa is ready, about 15 minutes. If the liquid is almost all absorbed but the quinoa is still not ready, stir another 1/4 cup of water in.
  2. While quinoa is cooking, heat oil over medium heat and stir-fry the garlic and veggies.
  3. Mix veggies with quinoa and serve, garnished with fresh basil/cilantro.

Notes

Store-bought chili pastes vary: some are spicier than others, and some contain sugar whereas others do not. If you’re not sure how strong your curry paste is, start with 2 tbsp and once the quinoa is fully cooked, taste it, and stir-in another tbsp of curry paste, as needed. You may also want to add additional sugar and/or Sriracha sauce or dried red chili flakes.

Keywords: asian, coconut milk, easy, favorite, gluten-free, low-carb, nut-free, original, quinoa, stove top, thai, under 30 minutes, curry, vegan

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag me — I can’t wait to see what you’ve made!

Red Curry Quinoa (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

69 thoughts on “Quick & Easy Red Curry Quinoa”

  1. This recipe is so delicious. Curry is one of my favorite foods but I usually have such a hard time making it taste right at home. It was so easy. I actually threw everything into my rice cooker and it turned out perfectly. I had to put it on the brown rice setting.

    Reply
  2. Just sent this recipe to my husband (who works from home) in the hopes that it’s cooked and waiting form me tonight when I get home for dinner. Sounds so good…….just like the rest of your recipes.

    Thought you might like to know……I overheard my husband talking to a group of people at a Christmas party,talking about eating vegan (we’re 1 year beginners) and he was raving about the fantastic website called “VEGANGELA”! You have no idea how funny this is but thought you’d like to know, word of your website is spreading. 🙂

    Happy New Year!
    Jackie

    Reply
    • Hi Jackie – As you can probably tell, I’ve been really busy over the last year and have not been able to dedicate much time at all to this website. Bur reading comments like this remind me that I really must get back into it. Thanks so much. Your comments (and your husband’s comments!) totally made my day 🙂

      Reply
  3. I already made it a few times and every time it’s delicious! I was wondering: have you ever tried making it in the slow cooker? If so do you have any instructions how to make it work?

    Thanks!!!!!!!

    Reply
  4. I’m confused. You seem to use the terms interchangeably…..chili paste,chili sauce, curry paste. What’s the diff and when do I use each? (See your Ingredients, instructions and then the notes.)

    Reply
    • I just checked the post. I didn’t use the terms interchangeably. The recipe uses curry paste, and you can add hot chili sauce or chili flakes if you want it to have more heat. Hope that clarifies things for you.

      Reply
  5. I absolutely love how you chose to cook the quinoa in the coconut milk and curry past, makes it so beautiful.
    This was just delicious! Another one to add to our weekly shopping list!
    🙂

    Reply
  6. I made this last night but it came out a little weird, my quinoa didn’t simmer right with the other ingredients and sort of made a thick paste at the bottom of the pot. Some of it actually burnt a bit and crusted on the bottom. I added some water and let it go for a little while longer and the same thing happened. Is the coconut milk I’m using too thick? I tried to use equal parts of the liquid and gelatinous parts out of the can.

    It tasted pretty good though.

    Reply
  7. Do you know the difference between green and red curry paste. I’m looking forward to trying this and already have green paste. Could I substitute? Thanks!

    Reply
  8. Very good recipe! I halved the quinoa and coconut milk, added 1 tablespoon of peanut butter to the quinoa boil mixture along with some lemon grass and kefir lime. So good. Thank you!

    Reply
  9. So I made this today but I did it a bit differently. I like my curry to be a bit watery. So I added a bit less quinoa. What I ended up with was a curry that was the consistency of watery porridge. I then mixed the veggies and this curry quinoa paste together and OMG it was delicious. I only had carrots, onions, green onions, a red pepper and cauliflower on hand so that’s what I used. The extra sauce allowed everything to get coated and still leave a bit of liquid left. Really the quinoa was more for texture, ruff age and grains than anything else hahaha! Will make again! Super good.

    Reply
  10. Just made this recipe and it was by far, the best coconut curry dish I have ever had. I left out the brown sugar and added shredded coconut to the sauteed veggies. Sooooo AMAZING!! Thank you!

    Reply
  11. Just made this and it is by far one of the most amazing curry dishes I have made. I left out the brown sugar and added shredded coconut to the sauteed veggies. So AMAZING! Thank you!

    Reply
  12. I made this for dinner tonight and it was amazing! Thank you so much for sharing all of your wonderful recipes 🙂

    Reply
  13. Angela, thank you for this recipe. I made it tonight and now have all my lunches for this week! Had some for dinner, too, and it was delicious! Mine turned out a bit soupy, though, and I followed all the measurements. I’m wondering what I could do? (Eliminate broth/water?) Thanks!

    Reply
    • Thanks for trying my recipe – I’m sorry that it was soupy. Next time, you may want to just cook-off the liquid by simmering the quinoa with the lid-off for a few minutes.

      I’ll try making this again this week, so I’ll double-check the measurements and update the recipe as required…

      Reply
      • Thanks. I will try that next time! Either way, it was nothing short of pure deliciousness!! It was a hit with my picky father, too!

        Reply
  14. I tried this recipe and it is great. I added a lot of the Sriracha sauce as I like curry dishes hot. Really good. A very satisfying and tasty meal. My brother didn’t know it was vegan and took a big bowl. Said he loved it. Thanks for posting low carb recipes. So many of the vegetarian recipes are loaded with carbs. I will be trying more.

    Reply
    • Glad you liked it. And you’re welcome about the recipes. I’ve struggled with eating too many carbs in the past, so I built up a repertoire of healthy recipes and then decided to share them with the world! Let me know what other recipes you try 🙂

      Reply
  15. What a delicious and easy recipe! Thank you! I added ginger, soy sauce, and sesame oil to the veggies to give them a little more flavor, but otherwise followed as is.

    Thank you!

    Reply
  16. Made this for lunch, I loved it. I didn’t use the brown sugar though, not allowed to eat any sugar lol! My sister says to thank you for this website.

    Reply
  17. Hello Angela,

    First things first, I love your website!!! Ok, I’m 22 years old. My sister and I are looking to try vegan meals as we want to make the switch. I am so glad that I can still eat my Thai 🙂 You’re awesome and I look forward to this meal.

    Reply
    • Thanks for the kind words, Andrea! I’m glad you’re digging my site. Good luck on your path to veganism. Thai food is one of my favorites too – please let me know when you try this dish 🙂

      Reply
  18. Just made it tonight for dinner and LOVED IT! thanks, looking forward to making more of your recipes.

    Reply
  19. I made this tonight! It is soo delicious! Thank for this awesome quick and easy recipe! I will definitely be making again and again! Love the Quinoa Recipes!! Keep ’em coming!! 🙂

    Reply
    • So happy to hear this recipe is turning out to be such a hit. I’ve got more to come… just need more TIME! Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂

      Reply
  20. Wow, this was great! Mine didn’t look quite as pretty as yours, but it was a huge success tonight. Thanks again for another great recipe.

    Reply
  21. I made a version of this last night, and it was delicious. I did not have any curry paste, but did have a jar of red curry sauce, so I just made it a little more soupy than your recipe. I also added 2 tbsp of peanut butter, but other than that, it was identical to your recipe. Thanks, Angela!

    Reply
  22. Hello lovely!

    That’s an awesome quick recipe to go! I have heard of that brand, and used other condiments by that, but never the curry one before. That quinoa looks tasty! I also made a vegan curry freekah dish today and it was awesome to try something new!

    Guess what? I am nominating you for the Liebster Award because you are a fantastic vegan blogger and one of my favorite reads!

    http://veganmiam.com/awards/liebster-award-2013

    Warmly,

    ♡ rika, vegan miam
    http://www.veganmiam.com
    ★ i travel + i eat vegan blog ★

    Reply
    • Thank you so much, Rika! You’re so sweet. I’m going to do a special post of all my favorite vegan resources very soon and you can bet that your blog will be at the top of the list. You rock!

      Reply
  23. My first Thai recipe and first with quinoa. I ran into a few glitches, First I decided to double the recipe and that left me with ALOT of Quinoa, lol!( I set aside half for another recipe.) Second I did not decide to double until after I got home and had only one can of coconut milk, so I just used 4 cups of veggie broth and 3/4 cup of pineapple juice instead of brown sugar. I worried a little because it was a little soupy but eventually it does soak up. I used 1 red bell pepper and one red onion, half a bag of baby carrots and one crown of broccoli and the whole can of pineapple. It came to 8 cups of veggies not six and it was really good!!! It did NEED the Sriracha sauce ,of which I was out of, so I used regular and it was ok! Cannot wait to try with other veggies and maybe some meat for my carnivore husband! Thank you!!

    Reply
  24. Just made it and it was fantastic! Next time I’m going to try to sweeten the curry sauce with pineapple instead of brown sugar….. the one thing was that the quinoa came out a little soupy – is it meant to be like this? Next time I might try using a little less soup broth.

    Reply
    • No, it shouldn’t be soupy. Maybe just try using 1 cup of broth, and adding a bit if it needs more? I’ll make this again this week and update the recipe if I think it can be made with less broth… Oh, and I love the idea of using pineapples to sweeten the sauce!

      Reply
    • I made this again tonight, and realized that my liquid measurements were off. So you were right that it was way too soupy. I’ve adjusted the measurements above – thanks so much for letting me know and sorry about that!

      Reply
  25. Angela,

    I am new to the whole vegan thing and I stumbled across your site looking for things to try. I made the Red Curry Quinoa last night and it was wonderful! I added the Sriracha because I love spicy…..and I was really impressed at how something so healthy could taste so good! Thank you…and I will be trying many more of your recipes!

    Reply

Leave a Comment

Recipe rating