Thai-inspired Red Curry Salmon is simmered in an incredibly tasty coconut red curry sauce with bell peppers, garlic and onions.
Red Curry Salmon
Red Curry Salmon is a quick and flavorful salmon recipe, perfect for those busy nights when you want something delicious and nutritious, without spending hours in the kitchen. The salmon simmers in a luscious red curry coconut sauce infused with aromatic herbs and spices, creating a rich, flavorful base. The best part? You can customize it with your favorite veggies. For more fish curry recipes, I also love this Salmon Coconut Curry with Spinach and Chickpeas and Broiled Tilapia with Thai Coconut Curry Sauce.
Why You’ll Love This Red Curry Salmon Recipe
My daughter Karina took one bite of this and said OMG! She loved this dish! I’m always looking for new salmon recipes and this was a winner with the salmon lovers in my house.
- Simple: You only need one pan to make this easy salmon curry with coconut milk. And bonus–it cooks in less than 25 minutes!
- Customizable: You can swap the vegetables for whatever you prefer! I used bell peppers, but snap peas or baby spinach would also be great.
- Dietary Restrictions: It’s high-protein, dairy-free, gluten-free (check the labels on the fish sauce), Weight Watchers-friendly, and anti-inflammatory.
If you make this healthy Thai red curry salmon recipe, I would love to see it. Tag me in your photos or videos on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook!
Red Curry Salmon Ingredients
There are two sets of ingredients: one for the salmon rub and the other for the curry sauce. All of the rub ingredients (avocado oil, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, red curry paste, salt) are also used in the sauce. Below is more about the red curry sauce ingredients, but the exact measurements can be found in the recipe card at the bottom.
- Oil: I used avocado oil, but any neutral cooking oil will work.
- Aromatics: Grated ginger and garlic smell amazing when sauteed.
- Red Curry Paste: Thai Kitchen’s curry paste is widely available at most supermarkets, but if you have an Asian market nearby, check out their selection. Curry pastes vary in spiciness, so pick one depending on your heat tolerance.
- Light Coconut Milk creates the base of this creamy coconut curry sauce while keeping it light in calories.
- Fish Sauce is preferable for the best Thai flavor, but you can substitute soy sauce if necessary.
- Brown Sugar adds sweetness.
- Vegetables: Sliced sweet or yellow onions and green onions, and red bell peppers, any color bell pepper. I like using one green and one red, yellow, or orange for color.
- Lime for bright citrus flavors
- Fresh Herbs: Fresh Thai basil and cilantro
- Salmon: You can use fresh or frozen (and thawed) salmon fillets. Remove the skin before coating the fish with the rub.
How to Make Red Curry Salmon
This baked red curry salmon cooks all in one pan on the stove and then in the oven, making cleanup a breeze. See the recipe card for the complete instructions.
- Curry Salmon Rub: Mix the 6 rub ingredients in a small bowl until a paste forms. Brush the mixture evenly across the fillets.
- Curry Coconut Sauce: Sauté the ginger and garlic in a large oven-safe skillet. Add the curry paste and toast for a minute. Then, pour in the coconut milk, fish sauce, and brown sugar, followed by the peppers, onions, and scallion whites. Simmer on for 10 to 12 minutes.
- Bake Salmon: Nestle the fish in the skillet and bake at 400°F for 10 minutes.
- Finish Touches: Remove the pan from the oven and stir in the lime juice, basil, cilantro, and scallion greens.
Variations
- Fish: Substitute salmon for any white fish, like cod, snapper, or tilapia. If you use thinner fillets, you may need to reduce the baking time.
- Coconut Milk: If you don’t have light milk, mix 7 ounces of coconut milk with 7 ounces of water. You can also use regular canned coconut milk if you prefer.
- Vegetables: Replace the bell peppers with snap peas, snow peas, baby spinach, broccoli florets, or sliced mushrooms.
- Sweetener: Swap brown sugar for honey or maple syrup.
- Herbs: If you can’t find Thai basil, skip it or use regular basil.
What to Serve with Red Curry Salmon
Serve the salmon curry over jasmine rice, brown rice, or cauliflower rice for a low-carb option, and you’ve got yourself a wholesome meal that’s as nutritious as it is tasty.
Storage
- Refrigerate the leftover fish for up to 3 days.
- Reheat it on the stove or microwave it until warm.
More Salmon Recipes You’ll Love
- Baked Salmon
- Air Fryer Salmon with Maple Soy Glaze
- Salmon Salad
- Asian Salmon Bowl
- Grilled Salmon Kebabs
Red Curry Salmon
Equipment
Ingredients
Salmon Rub
- 1/2 tablespoon avocado oil, or any neutral cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Curry Sauce
- 1 teaspoon avocado oil, or any neutral cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoon red curry paste
- 1 14 oz can light coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce, or soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 small sweet onion, or yellow onion, sliced
- 1 1/2 bell peppers, sliced (I like to use one green and one red/yellow/orange)
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced, white part separated
- 1 lime, juiced
- 2 tablespoons chopped Thai basil
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
- 4 4-ounce salmon fillets, skin removed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F and adjust the oven rack on the top third.
- In a small bowl, add oil, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, curry paste, and salt. Mix well with a fork until a smooth paste has formed. Spread mixture evenly across the salmon filets with a pastry brush.
- In a large, deep oven-safe skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat, when hot add the ginger and garlic. Sauté for about 30 to 60 seconds, until fragrant.
- Add curry paste and toast for another minute. Pour in coconut milk, fish sauce, and brown sugar. Whisk to combine and add peppers, onions and scallion whites. Let simmer low heat, covered for about 10 to 12 minutes until the peppers are tender. If too dry, add 2 tablespoons water.
- Nestle the fish into the skillet. Bake at 400F for about 10 minutes or until cooked to your desired preference.
- Remove from the oven and stir in lime juice, fresh basil, scallion greens and cilantro.
- Serve alongside cooked brown rice or cauliflower rice.
I made this last night, using only pantry ingredients (I’m kinda proud of myself for that!). I am super impressed with how flavorful this turned out to be. I think perhaps it would be even better with grilled salmon or shrimp. I added extra veggies and served over brown rice. Definitely a keeper.
Wonderful
This is the second time I made this recipe. Absolutely delicious! I didn’t have a green pepper so just used red and yellow. I also didn’t have fresh ginger but the dried ginger worked beautifully. Paired well with a nice dry white wine.
Absolutely delicious and beautiful presentation. This is one of those recipes where I can’t believe I just made something this good.
My one recommendation is to not make for a busy weeknight, it took me 1.5 hours with all the chopping and my arm almost fell off grating the ginger. Perfect for a holiday or a lazy weekend when you have time.
I make salmon a lot as it’s one of the few things my husband and both kids will eat. I tried this recipe out and they all said that this was the best salmon they ever had! There was nothing left! I did use Pataks mild curry paste. It is Indian rather than Thai, but it only has mild spice and great flavor. Otherwise, made the recipe as is and will be making again, often! Wish I could post a picture because it looked as good as it tasted!
So glad everyone enjoyed it!
I love curry and loved this recipe. I didn’t have any green peppers so I substituted with bok choy cut into bite size. I wasn’t sure of the substitution but it turned out delicious.
This recipe was delicious. Added some sriracha for a little more heat and bulked up on veg.
I thought this was delicious, but I bought the red curry paste at an oriental market and it was too spicy for the grandchildren. I would recommend not rubbing the curry on the salmon. That would reduce the spice by half. I plan to make this again, definitely!
Absolutely delicious!!! This one is going into our rotation for sure. I substituted boneless, skinless chicken breast for the salmon since we aren’t crazy about salmon. I baked the thin breasts on a cookie sheet w/ the curry rub on top at 400F for 10 minutes and then popped them in the pan with the sauce and finished in the oven for another 10 minutes. Came out perfect!
Great!!!
This was beyond outstanding, better than the Thai restaurant that we frequent! My husband raved about it throughout the whole meal and he’s not even a fan of salmon. I have never been disappointed by any of your recipes and this was no exception!
This was absolutely beyond incredible, Gina. Like… I have no words. I never wanted it to end!!!!!!!!
I love salmon, and I’ve had a lot of really nice salmon recipes but never have I had something as delicious as This red curry salmon recipe. It was hands down amazing!
Thanks Julia!
So good! Even my picky 6 year old liked it! Will be making again for sure!
This dish was phenomenal! Better than eating out at a restaurant. We plan on making this one regularly. Thank you!
it is good
I don’t eat curry meals but my son wanted to try it. Awesome! Made it for my 4-Day Meal Prep.
Far exceeded my expectations. This was my first SkinnyTaste recipe and it was outstanding! Highly recommend!
Thanks Lisa! Welcome!
This dish was delicious. I used barramundi instead of salmon and adjusted the spices a little bit….my husband is Indian lol. He loved this curry better than the one at our favorite Thai restaurant and I agree!! Mine had a smoky flavor on top of the already delicious flavors. This was soooooooo good! Even better the next day.
Absolutely love this recipe!! So full of flavours! Thank you.
My hubby and boys loved it and all asked me to save the recipe. We are trying to eat more fish and this was such a tasty way to switch it up.
This looks so amazing but sadly am not a fish fan. What are your thoughts on using chicken instead of salmon?
Sure!
My husband and I really liked this dish. We had it tonight for dinner and really enjoyed it.
Absolutely delicious! Family favorite- requested often. Threw in an extra pepper or so for some more veggies- but otherwise followed exactly. Thank you for this!!
This was amazing. I immediately shared the recipe with friends and family.
This was so delicious! I can’t wait to make it again!
This recipe is perfect for wild caught salmon because it keeps it moist and tender!
Made this recipe for the first time today and my super picky teen son said it was excellent. Tastede delicious and will definitely be added to our meal rotation.
Love this recipe. I’ve made it twice and it’s always a hit.
Absolutely delicious! Definitely going to make again. I want to try with shrimp marinated in the rub. How would you adjust the cook time in the oven?
This was SO very yummy! Not a thing we would change! Very filling also served over Jasmine rice!
Good tasting, but I think it depends a lot on what brand of curry paste you use.
I doubled the recipe and I had a lot of extra sauce. In step #4, after adding the coconut milk and simmering covered, the recipe says to add water if it is too dry. Mine was saucy and anything but dry.
In step #5, it doesn’t say whether to bake covered or uncovered. I assumed uncovered. Was it supposed to be covered?
uncovered.
This one is a keeper for sure. We like to have salmon about once a week, and it is nice to have a variety of ways to prepare it. My husband doesn’t really like curried dishes, but he did enjoy this one.
Very very hot and I only added 1 1/2 T red curry paste
Bought red curry pastes are often very hot. If you make your own you can remove the seeds from the chillies and get the flavour without the heat. It doesn’t take too long and can freeze it. Lots of recipes out there. 1 batch can do 20 or more meals so worth the effort.
This was absolutely delicious. My husband loved the flavor profile. I could not find Thai basil anywhere. I used fresh basil from my yard. Not sure what kind it was. I served it with brown rice. I will definitely make this again.
This was absolutely delicious! 100/10 (not a typo lol)
Could this be made entirely on the stove top? If so, how would I adjust the cooking time?
Sure just simmer until the fish is cooked through.
I made this for my wife and i and it was absolutely delicious. Obviously, I used only 2 salmon filets. Wonderful dish, thanks so much for its creation.
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Huge hit! Everyone enjoyed it, including my three year old.
Super easy to make and so delicious!
Thanks Diana!
This looks amazing! What do you suggest to replace the coconut milk with? I have an allergy but really want to try this!
Maybe half and half?
Delicious. It did take me about an hour to make due to all the chopping, but it was well worth it. Very wonderful and soothing flavors. I will definitely make it again.
Excellent flavor and easy to make! I used Thai kitchen red curry paste and fish sauce with Italian basil (couldn’t find Thai basil). I served it with brown rice and it was a hit with the whole family
Absolutely delicious!! Could not find Thai basil so dropped a star anise in the sauce, only had small can of coconut cream, so used that and added water, only had 2 salmon filets, so added shrimp. Served with quinoa (and some crispy quinoa on top). Again – absolutely delicious!!
So delicious!!! On my repeat list for sure. Forgot to take a pic. Smelled too delicious to wait!!!
🙂
This is the most flavorful, delicious skinny taste recipe I’ve made yet.
Very tasty, easy recipe. I added a couple of handful of spinach with the onions and bell peppers.
Just as good as it looks!! But…not for a quick and busy night dinner. By the time you get everything out, chop, re-reading directions (and pouring a glass of wine) and cooking, it took me close to an hour and a half. But we did all like it!
So quick and easy and tasted amazing!
Love this! Going to try with sea bass next time just to mix it up.
I was thrilled to see this recipe pop up as I was thawing out salmon and had all of the other ingerdients on hand. I always follow the recipe as stated the first time I make it. Also, my red curry paste brand is Maesri (I buy at asain market).
My husband and I agree this has a fantastic flavor. The only thing I’ll do differently next time is omit curry paste on the salmon before cooking. This is only because the Maesri brand is SPICY. We both love spice but this one got us.
This is so yummy and we’ll add it to the rotation since we eat salmon weekly.
Thanks Gina
Great!!!
This recipe sounds delicious but I was wondering if I could substitute a different kind of fish like cod. Would it hold up?
Give it a try, let us know how it works.
I bet you could. I’m going to try it with shrimp too.