Ca Ri Ga, or Vietnamese curry chicken is the ultimate comfort dish. With a rich coconut-based curry paired with succulent chicken thigh and hearty root vegetables, this dish has an amazing depth of flavor and can easily be made to be a healthy curry dish that you can fit into your daily diet.
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💭 What Is Ca Ri Ga?
Ca Ri Ga is a Vietnamese chicken curry comprising chicken and vegetables simmered in a coconut-based yellow curry. It’s often served with a side of rice or baguette and is the ultimate comfort dish.
If you like Ca Ri Ga, check out the following:
Vietnamese Curry vs. Thai Curry
Thai curries tend to be much spicier in flavor and have more distinct herbal ingredients typical of Thai cuisines such as galangal and kaffir lime leaves. Both curries contain coriander seed and cumin seed, and use coconut milk as a base. Vietnamese curries are generally a vibrant yellow color, while Thai curries can have red, green, or massaman, to name a few.
Check out my Thai curry recipes:
🍎 Is Ca Ri Ga Healthy?
Ca ri ga is typically not a very healthy dish given that it typically consists of a hefty portion of coconut milk, which is very caloric and packed with fats and is served with a huge portion of carbs which can easily add excessive calories if not eaten mindfully.
However, it’s not hard to make this dish healthier with a few ingredient swaps and mindful portioning.
This recipe will show you some tweaks that will make ca ri ga easy to fit into your daily calorie intake.
🍏Calories and Nutrition – How to Make It Healthy
A serving of Vietnamese curry chicken with a serving of rice is 424 calories with 35 grams of protein, 18 grams of fat, and 44 grams of carbs. Given the high protein content from the chicken, low-calorie content from the seasonings and light coconut milk, and a portioned side of carbs, this is a very healthy dish that is well-balanced with macronutrients.
Here’s what I did to make this healthy:
- Used light coconut milk
- Portioned 4oz of boneless skinless chicken thigh as chicken with skin can pack a lot of extra fat
- Used cooking spray instead of oil. A tablespoon of olive oil can have a whopping 120 calories mainly from fat.
- Omitted potatoes since I have enough carbs from the rice
- Portioned 1 serving of rice
For a detailed breakdown of each ingredient, their portioning, and how they make up the nutrition profile of this curry chicken recipe, you may refer to the table below:
| Viet Chicken Curry | Ingredient | Quantity | Calories | Protein (g) | Fat (g) | Carbs (g) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken Thigh | 4 oz | 130 | 22 | 10 | 0 |
| Light Coconut Milk | 0.33 cup | 45 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Lemongrass | 0.5 stalk | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Garlic | 1 clove | 4.5 | 0.2 | 0 | 1 |
| Carrot | 1 | 25 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 6 |
| Chicken Stock | 1 cup | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Fish Sauce | 1 tbsp | 15 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Sugar | 1 tsp | 16 | 0 | 0 | 4.2 |
| Shallot | 0.3 | 18 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 4.2 |
| Brown Rice | 0.25 Cup | 150 | 3 | 0 | 33 |
| Total | 418.5 | 31.4 | 15.1 | 51.4 |
📋 Ingredient Notes
To make the Vietnamese curry chicken, you’ll need the following.
Curry Ingredients
- Garlic and Shallots – Staple aromatics in Vietnamese cooking that will enhance the curry flavor
- Fresh Lemongrass – A fragrant herb that gives the chicken a hint of citrus and freshness. You can get these at most Asian markets, or your local grocery store if you're lucky. You can also substitute with a tube of lemongrass paste, although the flavor won't be quite the same.
- Light Coconut Milk – Used 1 serving of light coconut milk.
- Chicken Broth – Used to help thin out the curry and cook the rest of the ingredients. Water can also work if chicken stock isn't available.
- Bay Leaves – Dried one works. Steeped in the curry and removed to give it flavor.
- Vietnamese Curry Powder – Madras curry powder is the fan favorite here.
- Fish Sauce – Used to season the curry to make it saltier.
- Sugar – Balanced out the saltiness of the dish and gives it a delicious umami flavor. Traditionally, palm sugar is used, but I used brown sugar given it is harder to find. You can also use granulated sugar.
Chicken and Rice
- Boneless chicken thighs – I opted for boneless skinless chicken thighs since it has enough fat for the flavor but not too much so that it would make the dish unhealthy. This is a lot easier to deal with than using a whole chicken.
- Carrots – Adds a great contrast in texture to the curry with a bit of sweetness.
- Rice – I used brown rice. Jasmine rice also would work well.
- Salt and Black Pepper – Additional seasoning for the chicken
- Garnishes – Garnishing the dish with some fresh herbs gives it a great freshness. I garnished it with cilantro. You can also add a squeeze of lime juice and red pepper flakes.
🔪 Step by Step Instructions
Stovetop
The good old traditional stovetop method.
Prepare the ingredients – Mince the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass. Cut the chicken thigh into small, bite-sized pieces, trimming off any excess fat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
Sauté the aromatics – In a saucepan or small pot, bring the stove to medium heat and spray cooking spray and sauté the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass.
Brown the chicken – Add in the chicken pieces to brown the outsides by flipping periodically. Sauté until the aromatics smell fragrant and the chicken is browned, about 1-2 minutes.
Make the curry – Add in the carrots, bay leaf, coconut milk, and curry powder. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are fork tender. Add in the chicken stock periodically to deglaze or to reach the right consistency for the curry sauce.
Season and serve – Turn off the heat and add the fish sauce and sugar, seasoning to your liking. Remove the bay leaf from the curry, garnish with cilantro, and serve with a side of rice or your carb of choice!
Instant Pot
The benefit of using an instant pot to make the curry is that it takes the guesswork out of how long to cook the chicken and carrots. The carrots always come out perfectly tender and the chicken is fully cooked and perfectly juicy.
Prepare the ingredients – Mince the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass. Cut the chicken thigh into small, bite-sized pieces, trimming off any excess fat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
Sauté the aromatics – Turn on sauté mode on the instant pot and spray cooking spray. Sauté the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass. Also, add in the chicken pieces to brown the outsides by flipping periodically. Sauté until the aromatics smell fragrant and the chicken is browned, about 1-2 minutes.
Make the curry – Add in the carrots, bay leaf, chicken stock, and curry powder. Close the lid and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
Season and add coconut milk – After the Instant Pot is done cooking, turn the pressure valve to release the remaining pressure carefully. Then take off the lid, turn on sauté mode, and add in the coconut milk, mixing everything together with a spatula. Add in the fish sauce and sugar, seasoning the curry to taste.
Garnish and serve – Pour the curry into a bowl, garnish with cilantro, and serve with your carbs of choice.
🍽 What To Eat It With
In this curry recipe, I paired it with a side of white rice. This is a super versatile dish that can be paired with several other options including the following:
- Egg noodles
- Rice Noodles or vermicelli noodles
- Vietnamese Baguette or French Baguette
- Rice
- Skip the carbs and add some potatoes. Yukon potatoes and sweet potatoes would work well here.
💭 Frequently Asked Questions
To prepare lemongrass, start by peeling it back a few layers to reach the white fleshy part. Then, cut the lemongrass into thin slices starting from the white, fleshy bottom until you reach the green woody part.
For more information about how to cook with lemongrass, check out this article from The Spruce Eats on How to Prepare Lemongrass.
I love the Three Crabs Brand fish sauce. For more information about the different fish sauce brands, check out this article about the Top Ranked Fish Sauce brands.
📖 Substitutions and Variations
Use boneless chicken breast – The chicken won’t be quite as juicy but this is a good substitute.
Use bone-in chicken – This will give the curry a slightly better flavor. Just ensure it's skinless if you want to keep calories and fats low.
Make it a noodle soup – Add more chicken stock and serve with some delicious egg noodles or rice noodles.
Switch up the herbs – Garnish with Thai basil or spring onions.
Make it spicy – Sauté a Thai chili or two with the aromatics.
🥡 Storage
You can store this dish in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.
🍳 Recipe
Healthy Vietnamese Curry Chicken Recipe (Ca Ri Ga)
Equipment
- 1 Instant Pot (Optional: Stovetop instructions also included)
Ingredients
Curry Ingredients
- 1 clove Garlic
- ½ Shallot
- 1 stalk Fresh Lemongrass
- ⅓ cup Light coconut milk
- 1 cup Chicken Broth
- 1 Bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon Curry Powder
- 1 tablespoon Fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
Chicken and Rice
- 4 oz Chicken Thigh (Boneless, skinless)
- 1 Carrot
- 1 serving Brown Rice
- Salt and Pepper
- Cilantro (For garnish)
Instructions
Stovetop
- Prepare the ingredients – Mince the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass. Cut the chicken thigh into small, bite-sized pieces, trimming off any excess fat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Sauté the aromatics – In a saucepan or small pot, bring the stove to medium heat and spray cooking spray and sauté the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass.
- Brown the chicken – Add in the chicken pieces to brown the outsides by flipping periodically. Sauté until the aromatics smell fragrant and the chicken is browned, about 1-2 minutes.
- Make the curry – Add in the carrots, bay leaf, coconut milk, and curry powder. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are fork tender. Add in the chicken stock periodically to deglaze or to reach the right consistency for the curry sauce.
- Season and serve – Turn off the heat and add the fish sauce and sugar, seasoning to your liking. Remove the bay leaf from the curry, garnish with cilantro, and serve with a side of rice or your carb of choice!
Instant Pot
- Prepare the ingredients – Mince the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass. Cut the chicken thigh into small, bite-sized pieces, trimming off any excess fat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Sauté the aromatics – Turn on sauté mode on the instant pot and spray cooking spray. Sauté the garlic, shallots, and lemongrass. Also, add in the chicken pieces to brown the outsides by flipping periodically. Sauté until the aromatics smell fragrant and the chicken is browned, about 1-2 minutes.
- Make the curry – Add in the carrots, bay leaf, chicken stock, and curry powder. Close the lid and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
- Season and add coconut milk – After the Instant Pot is done cooking, turn the pressure valve to release the remaining pressure carefully. Then take off the lid, turn on sauté mode, and add in the coconut milk, mixing everything together with a spatula. Add in the fish sauce and sugar, seasoning the curry to taste.
- Garnish and serve – Pour the curry into a bowl, garnish with cilantro, and serve with your carbs of choice.
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