Khao Soi Gai (Northern Thai Coconut Curry Noodles Soup with Chicken)

This Khao Soi Gai is a Thai coconut curry noodles soup that is incredibly fragrant and flavorful! Chicken gets cooked in a spicy, warming, and aromatic paste, and then is simmered with veggies and seasonings in a creamy coconut milk broth, and served with egg noodles. Top your bowl with fresh coriander, mint, red onion, and crispy fried wonton wrapper strips for the ultimate Thai comfort food experience!

this recipe

Hello friends!

So, on the blog, we have a Sichuan soup noodles (Spicy Dan Dan Noodles with Wontons), and a Korean soup noodles (Spicy Korean Seafood Soup Noodles (Jjamppong)). It’s now time for a brilliant Thai soup noodles to make its grand entry!

Today, I’m sharing a recipe that is exploding with SO much flavor! It has brought me a tremendous amount of joy and comfort over the past few weeks with its warming, spicy, and soupy noodles goodness. 💛 Please meet my wonderful and tasty Khao Soi Gai!

Khao Soi Gai is a popular coconut curry noodles soup with chicken that is served in Myanmar, Laos, and Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. The preparation method and ingredients vary depending on the region. The version I’m sharing today is inspired by the northern Thai version. It’s robustly flavorful, not difficult to make, and is unbelievably delicious!

It’s also naturally dairy-free, and can be made gluten-free, vegetarian/vegan if needed. 🙌

I truly hope you guys love this mind-blowing and mouthwatering Thai coconut curry noodles soup as much as I do!

Why This Recipe Works

• It’s incredibly flavorful and full of warming spices like cumin, turmeric, and chili powder.
• We’ve got delicious toppings like fresh chopped coriander, mint leaves, sliced red onion and crispy deep-fried wonton wrapper strips (<– SO YUM) crowning this heavenly bowl of soup noodles.
• Boneless and skinless chicken thighs makes this less messy to eat than the traditional version, which is made with chicken drumsticks.
• Cooking the bean sprouts in the soup rather than serving them as a topping infuses the broth with a subtle nutty flavor.
• You can make the Khao Soi paste ahead, as well as the soup. Then just cook up your noodles and prepare the toppings on the day of serving.

Who’s ready for a bowl and some fun and delicious noodles slurping time?!

Ingredients

Here’s a couple of notes on some of the ingredients first.

For the Khao Soi Paste:

• Red Chilies: I used Bird’s Eye chilies, but Holland or other hot small red chilies will work too. Alternatively, you could use large dried red chilies, which are traditionally used to make Thai curry pastes. Use as many or as few chilies as you like to suit your taste.
• Lemongrass stalks: If unavailable, substitute with lemongrass paste, which can be found in most supermarkets.
• Galangal: This is similar to ginger in appearance, but it has a floral, sweet and fragrant flavor. Look for this in the Thai stall of your wet market if you’re based in Asia. If you’re in the U.S. or elsewhere in the world, try your local Thai or Asian groceries store. If unable to locate, use and additional tablespoon of chopped ginger.
• Kaffir Lime Leaves: Same tips as for locating galangal (see above.)
• Thai Dried Red Chilies: Use as many or as few as you like. Omit if you want to make this mild.
• Coriander Roots: Substitute with chopped coriander stems if roots are unavailable.
• Kosher Salt: Use half the amount if using table salt.
• Oil: I use canola oil, but vegetable oil or rice bran oil are fine to use to.

For the Crispy Wonton Wrapper Strips:

• Wonton Wrappers: Try to get the fresh ones at your local Asian supermarket. If you’re based in Asia, there may be a specific noodle or dumpling wrapper shop you can find these at.

For the Khao Soi Gai:

• Chicken: I use boneless and skinless chicken thighs because they’re less messy to eat with the soup when cut into bite-sized chunks. But you can use bone-in skinless drumsticks and thighs if you prefer.
• Red Onion: Or you can use sliced shallots.
• Red Chilies: Bird’s Eye is preferred, but any other small red chilies will work. Omit if making the soup milder.
• Sweet Dark Soy Sauce: This is the thick and viscous type. It’ll give the soup a deeper color.
• Coconut Sugar: Substitute with crystalized coconut sugar or brown sugar if you have that on hand instead.
• Lime Juice: As always, I recommend using freshly squeezed for best flavor.
• Chili Powder and Crushed Red Pepper Chili Flakes: Use more or less to taste.
• Uncooked Dried Egg Noodles: Or you could also use thin rice noodles such as vermicelli.
• Optional toppings/To Serve: Sliced red onion (or shallots), chopped coriander, chopped mint leaves, crispy fried wonton wrapper strips, and lime wedges for squeezing.

How to Make Khao Soi Gai

Make the Khao Soi Paste:

1. Prepare fresh ingredients: Prepare the red chilies, lemongrass, galangal, garlic, ginger, shallots, kaffir lime leaves, dried red chilies, and coriander roots (or stems if using). Throw everything in a food processor, followed by the turmeric powder, coriander powder, ground cumin, kosher salt, and canola oil.
2. Pulse: Cover and pulse into a smooth paste, uncovering as needed to push down the ingredients with a spoon and adding a tablespoon of water at a time to help the paste come along. Transfer the paste to a bowl or small container and set aside.

Make the Crispy Wonton Wrapper Strips:

1. Fry wonton wrapper strips: Cut the wonton wrappers into thin strips that are about 4mm wide. Then heat 3-4 cups canola oil in a small pot over high heat until it reaches a temperature of 180°C/356°F. Working in batches, fry a small handful of the wonton wrapper strips at a time for 30 seconds or until they are lightly golden and crispy. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to drain and set aside.

Make the Khao Soi Gai:

1. Prep: Clean and pat-dry the chicken thighs, then cut into bite-sized pieces. Slice the red onion (or shallots if using), mince the garlic, and chop the red chilies. Rinse and drain the mung bean sprouts and set aside.
2. Sauté Khao Soi paste: Heat the canola oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Once hot, add the Khao Soi paste and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
3. Cook chicken: Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes, or until the chicken starts to develop color and is coated in the paste.
4. Add onion and aromatics: Add the red onion, garlic, and red chilies and stir to combine. Cook for a minute or until the onion has slightly softened.
5. Add broth, coconut milk and mung bean sprouts: Pour in the low sodium chicken broth and coconut milk and stir to combine. Then stir in the mung bean sprouts and reduce the heat to medium-low.
6. Season and simmer: Season with fish sauce, sweet dark soy sauce, coconut sugar, lime juice, chili powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Stir to combine, then simmer uncovered for 20-25 minutes. Taste and add fish sauce and sugar if needed to suit your taste, then switch off the heat.

To Assemble/Serve:

1. Cook noodles: Cook the egg noodles according to package instructions in a pot of boiling salted water. Drain and divide the noodles evenly into four bowls.
2. To Serve: Ladle the chicken and soup on top of the noodles in the bowls. Top with the crispy wonton wrapper strips, chopped coriander and mint leaves, and sliced red onion. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing if desired.

Full ingredient amounts and detailed instructions can be found in the recipe card below.

Cook’s Tips

• Cook the egg noodles in salted boiling water. Similar to how you would cook pasta. The salt adds flavor to the otherwise pretty bland noodles.
• Let the soup gently simmer and avoid letting it come to a boil. You don’t want it to come to a boil as the coconut milk may curdle. It’ll taste fine if it does curdle, but the soup will have white flaky bits in it which is not ideal. Aim for a slow, gentle simmer to avoid curdling.
• Make the Khao Soi paste in advance. To save time, you can make the Khao Soi paste a day in advance. Store it a sealed airtight container in the refrigerator until needed the next day to make the soup.
• Use lemon juice to help clean your food processor bowl. The turmeric powder may leave yellow stains in your food processor bowl. To get rid of the stains, add 2-3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice to the bowl and let it sit near a window where ample sunlight is coming through for a few hours. Then rinse with soap and water as you normally would and voila! No more yellow stains.
• Bruise the lemongrass stalks with the back of your knife. It’ll help to soften it and make it easier to mince.
• Use store-bought Thai red curry paste. If you prefer not to make the Khao Soi paste or can’t find all the ingredients easily to make it, you can use a store-bought red curry paste instead. You’ll need 100-113 grams (3.5-4 ounces) give or take, depending on how spicy you want the soup to be. Note that it won’t taste exactly the same as my Khao Soi Gai, but it’ll still be pretty darn tasty!

FAQS

Is Khao Soi Gai spicy?

My version leans on the spicier side because, well I am That Spicy Chick after all. 😉 But if you prefer to make this milder, reduce the amount of fresh and dried red chilies you use for the Khao Soi paste. Or you could use half of the Khao Soi paste to make the soup and freeze the rest in a freezer-friendly container for another day. Also, reduce (or omit entirely) the amount of fresh red chilies, chili powder, and crushed red pepper chili flakes you use for the soup.

Can I make this gluten-free?

To make this gluten-free, replace the sweet dark soy sauce with a gluten-free sweet dark soy sauce such as a gluten-free kecap manis. Also, serve with thin rice or buckwheat noodles instead of egg noodles. In place of the crispy wonton wrapper strips, coat some of the boiled rice/buckwheat noodles in corn starch and then deep-fry them in batches until golden brown instead. Finally, double check that your fish sauce is GF certified. Thai Kitchen’s fish sauce is gluten-free.

Can I make this vegetarian/vegan?

Sure! Use a vegan fish sauce and veggie broth, omit the chicken, and use rice noodles such as vermicelli. Top off your bowl of soup noodles with baked or crispy pan-fried tofu cubes instead.

Can I make the Khao Soi paste in advance?

You can make the paste up to 1 day in advance. Store in a sealed airtight container in the refrigerator. Then take it out of the fridge the next day when you’re ready to start preparing the other ingredients for the soup. I wouldn’t make it any sooner than a day in advance because the water in may cause it to go bad.

Can I use bone-in chicken drumsticks or thighs?

Yes. In fact, it’s traditionally made with drumsticks in Chiang Mai. However, I prefer to use boneless and skinless chicken thighs because it’s less messy to eat than drumsticks in this noodle soup. But you do you.

Can I use beef, pork, or shrimp instead of chicken?

I haven’t tried making this with other proteins yet, but I don’t see why it couldn’t work.

• If using beef: Short ribs or boneless beef shank cut up into bite-sized chunks would be good options. Season with salt and cook the beef in a pressure cooker or instant pot with 1 cup of water for 40 minutes. Then proceed with the rest of the recipe as indicated.
• If using pork: I recommend using ground pork or thinly sliced pork collar/shoulder. You can follow the recipe as per the ‘Instructions’. If using ground pork, break up the lumps as it cooks with a wooden spoon or spatula.
• If using shrimp: Add the shrimp during the last 4-6 minutes of simmering the soup. Shrimp cooks fast, so adding it earlier on will result in overcooked and rubbery shrimp, and you don’t want that!

Can I make this ahead?

You can make the soup 3-4 days in advance. Store in individually portioned sealed airtight containers in the refrigerator. But cook the egg noodles, fry the crispy wonton wrapper strips, and prepare the other optional toppings when ready to serve.

Is this freezer-friendly?

The Khao Soi paste is, but I don’t recommend freezing the soup. The paste will stay good for up to two months in a freezer-friendly sealed airtight container. However, the coconut milk might separate if you try to freeze the soup. It is best eaten fresh.

More Easy Thai & Thai-inspired Recipes

• Easy Thai Green Chicken Curry
• Tom Kha Gai (Coconut Milk Chicken Soup)
• Peanut Butter Chicken Curry
• Creamy Tom Yum Pasta
• Thai Holy Basil Chicken (Pad Kra Pow Gai)
• Peanut Sauce Ground Pork Stir-fry
• Thai Basil Chicken Spaghetti

More Asian Soup Noodles

• Spicy Dan Dan Noodles with Wontons
• Spicy Korean Seafood Soup Noodles (Jjamppong)

MADE THIS RECIPE? If you make this recipe, leave a comment below and let me know how you liked it! Take a photo and tag it with @thatspicychick on Instagram and hashtag it #thatspicychick and I’ll be sure to share your masterpiece!

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Khao Soi Gai (Northern Thai Coconut Curry Noodles Soup with Chicken)

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This Khao Soi Gai is a Thai coconut curry noodles soup that is incredibly fragrant and flavorful! Chicken gets cooked in a spicy and warming Khao Soi paste, and then is simmered with veggies and seasonings in a creamy coconut milk broth and served with egg noodles. 

• Author: Lavina
• Prep Time: 15
• Cook Time: 45
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 4 1x
• Category: Dinner
• Method: Simmer
• Cuisine: Thai

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the Khao Soi Paste:

• 8–10 Red Chilies (Bird’s Eye preferred, but Holland or other hot small red chilies will work too), to taste – cut into ½-inch pieces  
• 2 Lemongrass stalks (or substitute with 2 TBLS Lemongrass Paste) – bottom woody part and upper tough part chopped off, outer layers removed and discarded, then sliced lengthwise through the middle and finely minced
• 2-inch piece Galangal -peeled and roughly chopped
• 6 Garlic cloves – minced
• ¾-inch knob of Ginger – peeled and minced (about 1 TBLS minced)
• 2 Asian Red Shallots – peeled and chopped
• 4–6 Kaffir Lime Leaves – destemmed and sliced into thin strips
• 2–6 Thai Dried Red Chilies, to taste – broken up into smaller pieces
• 1 TBLS chopped Coriander Roots (substitute with 4 chopped coriander stems if roots are unavailable)
• 1.5 TSP Turmeric powder
• 1 TSP Coriander powder
• 1 TSP ground Cumin
• 2 TSP Kosher Salt (use half the amount if using table salt)
• 1 TBLS Canola or Vegetable Oil
• 2–3 TBLS Water (as needed)

For the Crispy Wonton Wrapper Strips:

• 18 Wonton Wrappers – sliced into thin strips (about 4mm wide)
• 3–4 cups Canola Oil (or any other oil for deep-frying such as vegetable oil)

For the Khao Soi Gai:

• 2 TBLS Canola Oil
• 3 Chicken Thighs (about 454 grams / 1 pound), boneless, skinless – cleaned and pat-dried, cut into bite-sized pieces
• ¾ medium Red Onion (or use 6–8 shallots) – thinly sliced
• 3 Garlic cloves – minced
• 2–4 Red Chilies (Bird’s Eye preferred, but Holland or other hot small red chilies will work too), to taste – chopped
• 3 cups (about 300 grams) Mung Bean Sprouts – rinsed and drained
• 4 cups / 946ml Low Sodium Chicken Broth
• 565ml / 19 oz. Coconut Milk (I used a 400ml / 14 oz. big can and a 165ml / 5.5 oz. small can.)
• 2 TBLS Fish Sauce, or more to taste
• 1 TBLS Sweet Dark Soy Sauce
• 1 (50 grams) disc Coconut Sugar (substitute with 1–2 TBLS crystalized coconut or brown sugar if you have that on hand instead) – shaved with a knife
• 2 TBLS freshly squeezed Lime Juice, or more to taste
• 1.25 TSP Chili Powder, to taste
• 1.25 TSP Crushed Red Pepper Chili Flakes, to taste
• 454 grams / 1 pound uncooked dried Egg Noodles (or thin rice noodles such as vermicelli)
• Optional toppings: Sliced red onion (or shallots), chopped coriander, chopped mint leaves, crispy fried wonton wrapper strips
• To Serve (optional): Lime wedges for squeezing

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Instructions

For the Khao Soi Paste:

1. Prepare the fresh ingredients: Prepare the red chilies, lemongrass, galangal, garlic, ginger, shallots, kaffir lime leaves, dried red chilies, and coriander roots (or stems if using) as indicated in the ‘Ingredients’ section. Add them to a food processor bowl, along with the turmeric powder, coriander powder, ground cumin, kosher salt, and canola oil.
2. Pulse: Cover and pulse into a smooth paste, uncovering as needed to push down the ingredients with a spoon and adding a tablespoon of water at a time to help the paste come along. It’s okay if there are a few chunky bits, but try to get the paste as smooth as possible. Transfer to a bowl or small container and set aside. (Note: The paste can be made a day in advance.)

For the Crispy Wonton Wrapper Strips:

1. Fry the wonton wrappers strips: Cut the wonton wrappers into thin strips – about 4mm wide. Then heat 3-4 cups canola oil in a small pot over high heat (you may need more or less depending on the size of your frying vessel). Once the oil reaches a temperature of 180°C/356°F, turn down the heat to medium-low and add a small handful of the wonton wrapper strips. Fry for about 30 seconds, or until they are lightly golden and crispy. They will rise to the top and crisp up instantly. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to drain, then repeat until all of the wonton wrapper strips are cooked. Set aside.

For the Khao Soi Gai:

1. Prep: Clean and pat-dry the chicken thighs, then cut into bite-sized pieces. Slice the red onion (or shallots if using), mince the garlic, and chop the red chilies. Rinse and drain the mung bean sprouts and set aside.
2. Sauté Khao Soi paste: Heat the canola oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Once hot, add the Khao Soi paste and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
3. Cook chicken: Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes, or until the chicken starts to develop color and is coated in the paste.
4. Add onion and aromatics: Add the red onion, garlic, and red chilies and stir to combine. Cook for a minute or until the onion has slightly softened.
5. Add broth, coconut milk and mung bean sprouts: Pour in the low sodium chicken broth and coconut milk and stir to combine. Then stir in the mung bean sprouts and reduce the heat to medium-low.
6. Season and simmer: Season with fish sauce, sweet dark soy sauce, coconut sugar, lime juice, chili powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Stir to combine, then simmer uncovered for 20-25 minutes. Taste and add fish sauce and sugar if needed to suit your taste, then switch off the heat.

To Assemble/Serve:

1. Cook noodles: Cook the egg noodles according to package instructions in a pot of boiling salted water. Drain and divide the noodles evenly into four bowls.
2. To Serve: Ladle the chicken and soup on top of the noodles in the bowls. Top with the crispy wonton strips, chopped coriander and mint leaves, and sliced red onion. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing if desired.

Equipment

Dutch oven

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Turmeric powder

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Sweet Dark Soy Sauce

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Notes

Ingredient Notes, Cook’s Tips, and FAQs

1. For the Thai fresh ingredients: If you are in Asia, you can usually find Asian red shallots, Bird’s Eye red chilies, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, and lemongrass in the Thai stall of your local wet market. If you’re based in the U.S. or elsewhere, try finding these ingredients at your local Thai or Asian groceries store. For galangal, add an additional tablespoon of chopped ginger if unable to locate. In place of the Bird’s Eye red chilies, you could use large dried red chilies instead – they are traditionally used to make Thai curry pastes.
2. Let the soup gently simmer and avoid letting it come to a boil. You don’t want it to come to a boil as the coconut milk may curdle. It’ll taste fine if it does curdle, but the soup will have white flaky bits in it which is not ideal. Aim for a slow, gentle simmer to avoid curdling.
3. Use lemon juice to help clean your food processor bowl. The turmeric powder may leave yellow stains in your food processor bowl. To get rid of the stains, add 2-3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice to the bowl and let it sit near a window where ample sunlight is coming through for a few hours. Then rinse with soap and water as you normally would and voila! No more yellow stains.
4. Use store-bought Thai red curry paste. If you prefer not to make the Khao Soi paste or can’t find all the ingredients easily to make it, you can use a store-bought red curry paste instead. You’ll need 100-113 grams (3.5-4 ounces) give or take, depending on how spicy you want the soup to be. Note that it won’t taste exactly the same as my Khao Soi Gai, but it’ll still be pretty darn tasty!
5. Is Khao Soi Gai spicy? My version leans on the spicier side. But if you prefer to make this milder, reduce the amount of fresh and dried red chilies you use for the Khao Soi paste. Or you could use half of the Khao Soi paste to make the soup and freeze the rest in a freezer-friendly container for another day. Also, reduce (or omit entirely) the amount of fresh red chilies, chili powder, and crushed red pepper chili flakes you use for the soup.
6. Can I make this gluten-free? To make this gluten-free, replace the sweet dark soy sauce with a gluten-free sweet dark soy sauce such as a gluten-free kecap manis and double check that your fish sauce is GF certified. Also, serve with thin rice or buckwheat noodles instead of egg noodles. In place of the crispy wonton wrapper strips, coat some of the boiled rice/buckwheat noodles in corn starch and then deep-fry them in batches until golden brown instead. 
7. Can I make this vegetarian/vegan? Use a vegan fish sauce and veggie broth, omit the chicken, and use rice noodles such as vermicelli. Top off your bowl of soup noodles with baked or crispy pan-fried tofu cubes instead.
8. Can I make the Khao Soi paste in advance? You can make the paste up to 1 day in advance. Store in a sealed airtight container in the refrigerator. Then take it out of the fridge the next day when you’re ready to start preparing the other ingredients for the soup. I wouldn’t make it any sooner than a day in advance because the water in may cause it to go bad.
9. Can I use bone-in chicken drumsticks or thighs? Yes. In fact, it’s traditionally made with drumsticks in Chiang Mai. However, I prefer to use boneless and skinless chicken thighs because it’s less messy to eat than drumsticks in this noodle soup.
10. Can I make this ahead? You can make the soup 3-4 days in advance. Store in individually portioned sealed airtight containers in the refrigerator. But cook the egg noodles, fry the crispy wonton wrapper strips, and prepare the other optional toppings when ready to serve.
11. Is this freezer-friendly? The Khao Soi paste is, but I don’t recommend freezing the soup. The paste will stay good for up to two months in a freezer-friendly sealed airtight container. However, the coconut milk might separate if you try to freeze the soup. It is best eaten fresh.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 large bowl
• Calories: 1195
• Sugar: 27.4g
• Sodium: 2791.4mg
• Fat: 45.4g
• Saturated Fat: 25.8g
• Unsaturated Fat: 13.2g
• Trans Fat: 0.1g
• Carbohydrates: 129.1g
• Fiber: 7.6g
• Protein: 54.5g
• Cholesterol: 112.9mg

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