That Spicy Chick

Thai Yellow Egg Curry

This Thai Yellow Egg Curry is easy to make at home and incredibly delicious! Hard boiled eggs are fried to form a crispy golden crust, then served in a mouthwatering velvety Thai yellow curry with plenty of feel-good everyday veggies like carrots, potatoes and baby spinach. It’s better than takeout and is Thai comfort food at its best!

As you all know by now, I LOVE Thai food! From Pad Kee Mao (Drunken Noodles), to Pad Kra Pow Gai (Thai Holy Basil Chicken), to Choo Chee Salmon Curry, this blog has covered several takeout classics as well as some not very well-known weeknight Thai winner dinners. –> If you haven’t tried my Pad Mee Korat yet – aka Pad Thai’s spicier cousin, I insist you do. It’s stir-fry noodles nirvana on a plate. 🤤

But this blog, while having several classic Thai dishes and Thai curries, was missing a Thai yellow curry. So now we have a Thai Yellow Egg Curry that’s incredibly tasty, easy to make, and chockfull of feel-good veggies! 😋

Why eggs in a Thai curry you ask? Simply because it feels good to eat less meat every now and then, and also because I had several extra eggs in the fridge from testing my Lemon Basque Burnt Cheesecake. But instead of just adding the hard boiled eggs to this curry, I fried them in a bit of oil so that they could develop a magnificent golden-brown crust! The texture of the eggs is absolutely sublime with its crispy crust, and smooth and soft inside in this creamy Thai yellow curry. 😍

Close-up front view of yellow egg curry on rice on a plate with a spoon.

Why This Recipe Works

  • It’s quick and easy to make on any given weeknight, and made with mostly everyday ingredients and Asian pantry staples.
  • The fried hard boiled eggs with a soft and smooth interior and a wonderful golden crust taste delicious and compliment the velvety and smooth curry.
  • It’s packed with comforting feel-good veggies like carrots, potatoes, baby corn, and baby spinach. (But you can customize it with any curry friendly veggies you have on hand.)
  • Using Mae Ploy’s yellow curry paste makes this curry taste authentic, and gives this dish TONS of flavor. It also saves you time since you don’t have to make your own curry paste.
  • Thai yellow curry is mildly spicy, but you can make this dish as mild or as spicy as you like. It’ll taste phenomenal either way!

Ingredients

Labeled ingredients for Thai Yellow Egg Curry on a wooden board.
  • Thai Yellow Curry Paste: I use Mae Ploy’s curry pastes in my home (when not making them from scratch) as their flavors are more authentic and spicier than some other brands I’ve tried. Mae Ploy’s Thai yellow curry paste is also vegetarian and vegan friendly, and I highly recommend them! The other brand I can vouch for in terms of authenticity is Maesri. Thai yellow curry paste is milder than its green and red counterparts, so this is a great curry for those who’re not big on heat. However, if you are very sensitive to heat, you may want to add half the amount of curry paste indicated first. You can taste the curry and always stir in more later if needed. 👌
  • Chilies: I use plenty of red Bird’s Eye chilies and fiery hot Prik Kee Nu green chilies to spice up this otherwise mild curry! But you can use any hot small chilies in your area, and as many or as few as you like depending on your heat level preference.
  • Veggies: I kept it simple and used everyday veggies like red onion (you can use yellow or white onion instead too), carrots, potatoes, baby corn, and baby spinach. But any other curry friendly veggies will work. (See ‘Variations’ section below for more ideas.)
  • Corn Starch Slurry: To help thicken the curry.
  • Coconut Milk: I recommend using full-fat coconut milk for best texture and flavor. Light coconut milk just won’t give you the same luscious creamy texture.
  • Turmeric Powder: To give the curry an extra bright yellow color! 🤩
  • Thai Chili Powder: This has chili flakes, powder, and seeds. You can leave it out if you’d like to make this curry mild. Substitute with crushed red pepper chili flakes if you don’t have it on hand.
  • Makrut Lime Leaves: We’ll be finely mincing them into a powder to give the curry a nice, sweet citrusy aroma! Look for them in your local Thai or Asian grocery store.
  • Coconut Sugar: This comes in packages of small 50 gram discs as you can see in my Thai Green Chicken Curry post. It’s known as ‘gula kelapa’ and is from Indonesia. You’ll need to finely shave it with a knife before adding it to the curry so that it dissolves easily. You can use palm sugar (which is more commonly used in Thai curries) if you prefer. Or substitute with granulated coconut or light brown sugar if unavailable.
  • Oil: I use canola oil, but any other neutral flavored cooking oil is fine.

Full ingredient list and amounts are in the recipe card below.

Top view of yellow egg curry on rice on a plate with a spoon.

How to Make Thai Yellow Egg Curry

  1. Boil the eggs. In a pot of boiling salted water. In case any of the eggs crack in the pot, the salt will help to solidify the white part and prevent it from streaming out into the pot. Boil for 8 minutes for medium-boiled eggs, or 10 minutes for hard boiled eggs. Place the eggs in an ice bath (a bowl filled with water and ice) to “shock” them and prevent them from cooking further. Then peel after they’ve rested for 10 minutes.
  2. Fry the eggs. In a bit of oil in a large wok until lightly golden and blistered on all sides. Transfer to a paper towed lined plate to drain, then slice in half and set aside.
Eggs in an ice bath in a bowl, and sautéing peeled hard boiled eggs in a wok.

3. Sauté red onion, garlic, and ginger. Add the chilies continue sautéing until fragrant.

4. Add veggies. The carrots, potatoes, and baby corn. Stir-fry until slightly softened.

5. Build the curry. Add the Thai yellow curry paste and stir-fry to combine with the veggies. Then pour in the coconut milk and corn starch slurry, and stir to combine.

6. Stir in seasonings. The turmeric powder, Thai chili powder, finely minced makrut lime leaves, coconut sugar, and fish sauce. Then turn the heat down and cover the wok. Simmer until the potatoes and carrots are tender.

7. Add the lime juice, baby spinach, and coriander. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Then add the halved eggs and simmer until heated through. (Note: If you’re not particular about presentation, you can stir the eggs into the curry and simmer until heated through instead.)

8. Serve! Garnish with more chopped coriander and sliced red chili, and enjoy with warm steamed rice and lime wedges for squeezing if desired!

Process steps to make Thai Yellow Egg Curry.

Full detailed instructions are in the recipe card below.

Close-up front view of yellow egg curry on top of rice on a plate.

Cook’s Tips

  • Don’t boil the eggs for too long. Hard boiled eggs typically take between 9-12 minutes. But since you’ll be frying the eggs after boiling, it’s best to boil them for 8-10 minutes tops. This will ensure you don’t end up with overcooked hard and rubbery white parts, and dry, grainy yellow parts.
  • Use tongs to hold the eggs up and brown the tips too when frying them.

FAQs

What’s in Thai yellow curry paste?

Typically, a store-bought Thai yellow curry paste is made of garlic, lemongrass, salt, shallots, galangal, dried red chili, coriander seed, makrut lime peel, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, cardamom, and nutmeg. The turmeric is what makes the curry paste yellow.

How much Thai yellow curry paste to use?

The amount of Thai yellow curry paste to use depends on your heat level preference, what brand of curry paste you’re using, and how much coconut milk you are using. If you are sensitive to heat and using Mae Ploy’s curry paste, start with 2 tablespoons. You can taste the curry and stir in more later if you like. If you are using a mild curry paste like Thai Kitchen’s Thai Yellow Curry Paste, you can probably use the entire jar and still not feel much heat. I typically use 3-4 tablespoons for a good level of heat and flavor.

Is Thai yellow curry gluten-free?

Thai yellow curry is gluten-free and the paste is made with aromatics, spices, and chilies. There are usually no ingredients with any gluten in the paste. However, it’s always best practice to check the ingredient list on pack if have any gluten allergies.

How to thicken Thai yellow curry?

A corn starch slurry can thicken Thai yellow curry to your liking without having to use coconut cream. All you need to do is mix some cornstarch with water and stir it into the curry. The curry will start to thicken in a minute or two and as it simmers. For this recipe, I find 4 teaspoons of corn starch mixed with half cup of water makes this curry wonderfully thick and velvety. You can add more or less corn starch based on how thick you’d like the curry to be.

Front view of yellow egg curry on rice on plate. Wok with curry and bowl with rice behind.

Variations

  • Use different veggies. Snap peas, snow peas, bell pepper (any color you like), edamame, cauliflower, frozen peas, baby kale, etc. would all taste great in this curry.
  • Use a different protein. This curry is a great recipe base, and can be used to make Thai yellow chicken curry using diced boneless and skinless chicken thighs (or breasts), pork curry using thinly sliced pork fillet (tenderloin), beef curry using thinly sliced flank steak, or even tofu curry using cubed firm tofu. The chicken, pork, and beef can be stir-fried with the aromatics and curry paste just before you add the veggies. If using tofu, I recommend seasoning with salt and pepper and pan-frying first until golden brown. Then add the tofu back into the curry when you would add the eggs.
  • Use basil. Thai sweet basil or even Italian basil leaves would make a great addition to this Thai yellow egg curry. Stir it in with the baby spinach right at the end.
  • Make it vegetarian. Use a vegetarian Thai yellow curry paste (make sure fish sauce and shrimp paste are not included in the ingredients list), and light soy sauce (preferably a Thai one) instead of fish sauce to season the curry.
  • Make it vegan. Same as for making it vegetarian, but use crispy pan-fried tofu or tempeh instead of eggs. Alternatively, you could leave out the protein and make a Thai yellow vegetable curry with all your favorite veggies instead.
Top view of egg curry on rice on plate, and top view of curry in a wok. Text overlay "Thai Yellow Curry with Eggs & Everyday Veggies" and "thatspicychick.com".

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Thai Yellow Egg Curry

Top view of wok with Thai Yellow Egg Curry.

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5 from 1 review

Fried hard boiled eggs with a golden crust are served in a mouthwatering velvety weeknight Thai yellow curry that’s chockfull of feel-good everyday veggies! 

  • Author: Lavina
  • Prep Time: 15
  • Cook Time: 30
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: Simmer
  • Cuisine: Thai
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

Scale
  • 6 Large Eggs
  • 3 TBLS Canola Oil (or any other neutral flavored cooking oil)
  • ½ Red Onion (or yellow or white onion) – sliced into ¼-inch wide pieces
  • 8 Garlic cloves – minced
  • 1.5 TBLS minced Ginger
  • 214 Red Chilies (Bird’s Eye preferred, but any small hot red chilies will work), to taste – finely chopped
  • 26 Prik Kee Nu Green Chilies (optional), to taste – finely chopped
  • 165 grams / 2 medium carrots – peeled and thinly sliced into discs
  • 285 grams / 2 small Potatoes (Yukon Gold or other waxy potatoes recommended) – peeled and diced
  • 67 pieces Baby Corn – cut into ½-inch pieces
  • 24 TBLS Thai Yellow Curry Paste (I use Mae Ploy’s)
  • 500ml / 17 ounces (about 2 cups) Coconut Milk
  • 4 TSP Corn Starch + ½ cup water (mixed together to make a slurry)
  • 1 TSP Turmeric Powder
  • 1 TSP Thai Chili Powder (optional), to taste (substitute with crushed red pepper chili flakes if unavailable)
  • 46 Makrut Lime Leaves – destemmed and very finely minced
  • ¾ disc (about 37.5 grams) Coconut Sugar, to taste – shaved with a knife (substitute with palm sugar, or 12 TBLS granulated coconut or light brown sugar if unavailable)
  • 1 TBLS Fish Sauce
  • 2 TBLS freshly squeezed Lime Juice (about the juice of 1 lime), to taste
  • 3 cups Baby Spinach
  • 3 TBLS chopped fresh Coriander (Cilantro)
  • To Serve (optional): More chopped coriander, sliced (mild) large red chili, steamed rice, lime wedges for squeezing

Instructions

Prep:

  1. Prepare the ingredients: Chop the red onion, garlic, ginger, Bird’s Eye red chilies, Prik Kee Nu green chilies (if using), carrots, potatoes, baby corn, makrut lime leaves, and coriander as indicated in the ‘Ingredients’ section. Thinly shave the coconut sugar disc with a knife. Whisk together the corn starch and water in a small measuring cup (for easier pouring) or bowl until combined well and a slurry has formed.

For the Thai Yellow Egg Curry:

  1. Boil the eggs: Bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Use a slotted spoon to gently place the eggs in the pot, one at a time. Boil for 8 minutes for medium-boiled eggs, or 10 minutes for hard boiled eggs. Transfer the eggs using the slotted spoon to an ice bath (a bowl filled with water and ice). Peel after 10 minutes.
  2. Fry the eggs: Heat 3 tablespoons of canola oil in a large wok over medium heat. Once hot, add the eggs and sauté until lightly golden and blistered on all sides – about 6-7 minutes. Use tongs to hold the eggs up and brown the tips too. Transfer to a paper towed lined plate to drain, then slice in half and set aside. Scoop out and discard any crispy browned bits in the wok and set it back on the stovetop.
  3. Sauté onion and aromatics: Heat the oil in the wok over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the red onion, garlic, and ginger. Sauté for 1 minute, then add the red chilies and Prik Kee Nu green chilies (if using) and sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
  4. Add the veggies: Add the carrots, potatoes, and baby corn and sauté for 1-2 minutes until slightly softened.
  5. Build the curry: Add the Thai yellow curry paste and stir-fry for a minute to break it down and combine with the veggies. Then pour in the coconut milk. Give the corn starch slurry a quick stir with a spoon (the corn starch will have settled at the bottom), then pour it into the wok and stir to combine.
  6. Stir in the seasonings: Stir in the turmeric powder, Thai chili powder (if using), finely minced makrut lime leaves, coconut sugar, and fish sauce. Turn the heat down to medium and cover the wok. Simmer for 20-24 minutes, or until the potatoes and carrots are tender.
  7. Add the lime juice, greens, and eggs: Stir in the lime juice, baby spinach, and chopped coriander. Taste and adjust seasonings by adding more lime juice or sugar if needed. Add the halved eggs and simmer for 3-5 minutes, or until the eggs have heated through. Then switch off the heat. (Note: If you’re not particular about presentation, you can stir the eggs into the curry and simmer for 3 minutes or until heated through instead.)
  8. To Serve: Garnish with more chopped coriander and sliced red chili, and serve with warm steamed rice and lime wedges for squeezing if desired.

Notes

  1. Why boil eggs in salted water? In case any of the eggs crack in the pot, the salt will help to solidify the white part and prevent it from streaming out into the pot.
  2. Thai Yellow Curry Paste: Although Thai yellow curry paste is the mildest curry paste compared to red and green curry paste, different brands will have varying heat levels. Mae Ploy’s curry pastes are definitely on the spicier side. You may want to add half of the amount (2 tablespoons) first if you are sensitive to heat. You can taste and always add more later if needed. I like Mae Ploy’s curry pastes and highly recommend them because they taste authentic. The other brand I can vouch for is Maesri. 
  3. Chilies: Prik Kee Nu green chilies are small Thai chilies that are incredibly spicy. They’re listed as optional as they are very spicy, and also because they can be difficult to find outside of Asia. But you can use any hot small red and green chilies in your area, and as many or as few as you like depending on your heat level preference.
  4. Makrut Lime Leaves: These have a sweet citrusy flavor and are the leaves of the makrut lime fruit. You can find them in Thai specialty ingredients stores and in some well-stocked Asian supermarkets.
  5. Storage: The curry can be stored in a sealed airtight contained in the fridge for 2- 3 days. Reheat either in a wok/pot on the stovetop until hot throughout, or in the microwave for 2-3 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
  6. See post above for more tips and the ‘Variations’ section if you’d like to customize this curry.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 serving
  • Calories: 645
  • Sugar: 21.9g
  • Sodium: 1479.8mg
  • Fat: 41.7g
  • Saturated Fat: 23.5g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 14.3g
  • Trans Fat: 0.1g
  • Carbohydrates: 42.1g
  • Fiber: 8g
  • Protein: 18.2g
  • Cholesterol: 279mg

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2 comments on “Thai Yellow Egg Curry”

  1. Huge flavor and so good with eggs. Certainly comfort food at it’s finest! I love it.






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