Panang Curry with Chicken and Kaffir Lime

Ingredients

• Boneless skinless chicken thigh — Thinly sliced into bite-size pieces500 g
• Coconut cream — For frying the curry paste; use the thick top portion if using canned coconut milk250 ml
• Coconut milk — Full-fat400 ml
• Panang curry paste — Preferably Thai-style, adjust slightly to taste70 g
• Palm sugar — About 1 tablespoon, finely chopped if firm20 g
• Fish sauce — About 2 tablespoons30 ml
• Kaffir lime leaves — 2 leaves finely shredded, 2 leaves lightly torn4 whole
• Thai sweet basil leaves — About 1 loosely packed cup15 g
• Red spur chili — Thinly sliced for garnish, optional1 whole
• Neutral oil — About 2 teaspoons, only if the coconut cream does not split easily10 ml
• Jasmine rice — Cooked separately, for serving300 g

Nutrition

Nutrition values are estimates and may vary depending on ingredients and brands.

Instructions

1. 1
   Prepare the aromatics and chicken

   Slice the chicken thighs thinly across the grain. Stack 2 kaffir lime leaves, remove the center rib, roll them tightly, and shred into very fine strips. Lightly tear the remaining 2 leaves.

   5 minutes Room temperature

   Cues: The chicken slices should be thin enough to cook quickly and the shredded lime leaf should look like fine green threads.

   Tip: Thin slicing helps the chicken stay tender and lets the sauce coat every piece evenly.
2. 2
   Reduce the coconut cream

   Place a wok or wide sauté pan over medium heat. Add the coconut cream and cook, stirring often, until it thickens and looks glossy. If it remains smooth and refuses to release oil after 3 to 4 minutes, add the neutral oil.

   4 minutes Medium heat

   Cues: The cream should go from fluid white to thicker and shinier, with small beads of oil appearing around the edges.

   Tip: This step blooms the curry paste in fat, which gives the finished curry a deeper aroma.
3. 3
   Fry the curry paste

   Add the Panang curry paste to the reduced coconut cream. Stir and press it into the pan so it fries evenly until fragrant.

   2 to 3 minutes Medium heat

   Cues: The paste should darken slightly, smell intensely aromatic, and leave a light red oil sheen on the surface.

   Tip: Keep stirring so the paste fries without scorching; scorched paste tastes bitter.
4. 4
   Build the curry sauce

   Pour in the coconut milk gradually while stirring to dissolve the paste into a smooth sauce. Add the palm sugar, fish sauce, and the 2 torn kaffir lime leaves.

   2 minutes Medium heat

   Cues: The sauce should become smooth, reddish-tan, and lightly bubbling around the edge, not boiling hard.

   Tip: Adding the coconut milk gradually helps keep the sauce silky rather than lumpy.
5. 5
   Cook the chicken gently

   Add the sliced chicken and spread it out in the sauce. Simmer gently, stirring once or twice, until the chicken is just cooked through.

   6 to 8 minutes Medium-low heat

   Cues: The chicken should turn opaque and feel springy when pressed; the thickest piece should reach 74°C.

   Tip: Avoid a rolling boil, which can tighten the chicken and make the coconut sauce split too aggressively.
6. 6
   Finish with lime leaf and basil

   Remove the torn lime leaves if you prefer a smoother finish, or leave them in. Stir in the shredded kaffir lime leaves and most of the sweet basil, saving a few leaves for garnish.

   1 minute Low heat

   Cues: The basil should just wilt and turn glossy, and the curry should smell sweet, savory, and citrusy.

   Tip: Adding the shredded lime leaf at the end preserves its fresh perfume.
7. 7
   Adjust and serve

   Taste the curry and adjust with a little more fish sauce for saltiness or a little more palm sugar for roundness if needed. Spoon over hot jasmine rice and garnish with the remaining basil and sliced red chili if using.

   2 minutes Warm

   Cues: The final curry should be thick enough to coat a spoon and sit neatly over rice rather than spread like a soup.

   Tip: Panang curry is traditionally thicker than many other Thai curries, so let it reduce for 1 to 2 extra minutes if it looks too loose.