Anytime someone asks me for a restaurant recommendation here in town, my immediate answer is: Lucky Lotus. This locally-owned restaurant serving southeast Asian fare inspired by family-recipes is a can’t miss. Take my money, I’m done. You’re done. We’re all done. Their food is SO DANG GOOD! LL’s menu changes seasonally and offers a ton of gluten free, vegetarian, and vegan dishes. It’s one of a handful of spots here in town that all five of us can eat at at once, considering the kids’ food allergies/preferences and my Celiac Disease, so we enjoy often. One of my current favorites is their Sweet Potato Panang Curry, which is perfectly spicy and creamy — and I don’t even really like sweet potatoes?! They just make it so well. Every time I dig in I tell Ben, “I could eat this for every single meal of the day.” So much so that I decided to make my own version at home so if I wanted to, I could! Behold (humbly): Thai Sweet Potato Curry, aka my new go-to red curry recipe with a coconut and peanut twist! It is creamy, saucy, and spicy, with a satisfying lime and fresh herb twist to cut through the richness. Packed with protein and vegetables. INCREDIBLE! I can’t wait for you to try it.
Sweet Potato Thai Curry
Like I said, the inspiration for this Thai Sweet Potato Curry is Lucky Lotus’ Panang Curry. Panang curry paste is similar to Thai red curry paste though panang curry also includes roasted peanuts. To mimic the flavor, I added a thwack of peanut butter to store-bought red curry paste then seared the mixture in a hot wok to get roasted peanut undertones. There’s only one tablespoon of peanut butter in the entire recipe but it really brings a deep, and delicious dimension to this red curry. Add a can of creamy coconut milk and you’ve got yourself a rich and silky, red curry peanut sauce that you’ll want to drink with a spoon.
Battle of the Fresh Herbs
Lucky Lotus serves their sweet potato curry with fresh Thai basil and, if you can find it, it’s a must. Thai basil is very different than regular garden basil — it tastes like licorice and really stands out in each bite. During recipe testing I could only find Thai basil once, so I’ve also included instructions for how to incorporate cilantro into this dish as the fresh herb. Both options are totally delicious — though if you can find Thai basil near you, it really elevates the dish.
Make it Vegetarian or Vegan
Lucky Lotus does a great job of customizing their dishes to be gluten-free, vegan, and/or vegetarian, and this dish is also super easy to customize. To make it vegetarian:
Swap the chicken for a can of drained/rinsed canned chickpeas OR cubed extra firm tofu. Use vegetable broth or vegetable stock instead of chicken broth.
To make it vegan:
Use the above swaps and also omit the fish sauce. Add a drizzle of gluten free Tamari to mimic the savory richness fish sauce provides, or use a vegan fish sauce substitute. Add more veggies like cauliflower or carrots to pump the dish up.
Ready to get the restaurant experience at home?!
Try Beef and Broccoli
How to Make Thai Sweet Potato Curry
Start by stir frying sliced yellow onions in a little oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown and tender, 5 minutes. Add freshly minced garlic cloves and grated ginger then stir fry until very fragrant, 1 minute.
Next add red curry paste and peanut butter then smash the mixture into the bottom of the wok and let it sear. Stir then press/sear in 20-30 second increments until you can see that the red curry paste has browned a bit, 1 – 2 minutes.
This is the Thai red thai curry paste I buy at the grocery store. Despite the label reading “hot”, I don’t find it to be that spicy — a whole jar makes this dish maybe a 5 or 6 out of 10 on the heat scale (1 being water and 10 being a habanero pepper.) That said, if you’re sensitive to spice, start with half the jar then add more to the sauce later on if you tolerate it!
Next add full fat coconut milk, chicken stock or broth, a drizzle of fish sauce, and a sweet potato that’s been peeled then diced into 1/2 inch cubes. Bring the mixture to a simmer then turn the heat down to low and simmer until the sweet potatoes are just barely tender, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. By the way, I highly recommend using full fat coconut milk in here, vs light coconut milk— it really makes the dish creamy and balances all the flavors.
Next add thinly sliced chicken breasts then cook through, 3-4 minutes. I like to slice the chicken breasts into cutlets then slice each cutlet into thin trips so they cook quickly in the hot curry mixture.
Almost done! Add fresh baby spinach then cook until tender, 1-2 minutes.
Lastly, add fresh lime juice and the Thai basil leaves, if using, then let the Thai Sweet Potato Curry sit to cool and thicken for at least 10 minutes. When it’s time to eat, scoop over cooked jasmine rice then garnish with finely chopped peanuts, lime wedges, and fresh cilantro. Finally, dig in! I hope you love this extremely sauce and satisfying, restaurant inspired sweet potato coconut curry — it truly is a winner! Enjoy!
More Take-Out Inspired Recipes
Beef and Broccoli Spicy Shrimp Soup Potsticker Noodle Bowls Sesame Peanut Sauce Noodles Vegan Chickpea Curry Chicken Pad Thai Vietnamese-Style Caramelized Pork Bowls Easy Chicken Fried Rice
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