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Top down view of a white bowl with flatbread, white rice, and shrimp in a curry sauce.

Coconut Shrimp Curry

Yield: 6 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

For the shrimp:

  • ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt (cut in half if using table salt)
  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 pound large shrimp (31 to 40 per pound), peeled and deveined (see note)

For the sauce:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil or other cooking oil
  • 1 medium red or yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger (see note)
  • 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt (cut in half if using table salt)
  • 2 teaspoons ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon curry powder (see note)
  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 can coconut milk (see note)
  • ½ to 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • Hot cooked rice for serving

Instructions 

  • Place the shrimp in a resealable bag or in a dish. Add the salt, pepper, cayenne and lemon juice and toss until evenly combined. Cover and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, in a 12-inch skillet or saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat until rippling and hot. Add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the ginger, salt, coriander, curry, pepper, turmeric, and garlic.
  • Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the mixture is fragrant and the onions have softened and turned translucent, about 5-7 minutes.
  • Add the tomatoes, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom. Increase the heat to medium-high and simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring often.
  • Add the coconut milk and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a simmer.
  • Add the shrimp and any accumulated juices. Simmer until the shrimp are pink and cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the cilantro. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if needed.
  • Serve over hot, cooked rice, if desired.

Notes

Shrimp: some readers report they like adding more shrimp. You can increase the shrimp up to 2 pounds.
Ginger: an easy way to work with fresh ginger is to buy a piece of fresh ginger from the store, cut it into 1-inch pieces, and store in the freezer. When needed, pull a piece from the freezer and grate it on a rasp grater or on the small holes of a box grater (no need to peel). The popular frozen ginger cubes work well in this recipe, as well. 
Curry Powder: curry powder is a blend of spices, so the flavor and heat level will vary depending on the brand. My all-time favorite curry powder is the sweet curry powder from Penzey's spices (available online). 
Coconut Milk: light or regular coconut milk can be used in this recipe; however, the curry will be slightly thicker if using regular coconut milk. 
Thickening: for a thicker curry, add a cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 2 to 3 tablespoons cold water) with the shrimp and simmer until shrimp are pink and curry has thickened. 
Salt: there have been LOTS of varied comments over the years about the saltiness of this dish (some people think the salt is fine, others find it way too salty). To make it more foolproof, the recipe has been edited to start with less salt with the important note to add additional salt to taste, at the end, if needed, as well as details about using table salt vs coarse kosher salt.