Thai prawn and monkfish curry

If you enjoy Thai cuisine, I think you will love this spicy Thai prawn and monkfish curry. Made with succulent prawns and meaty monkfish fillets, along with a selection of tasty vegetables in a spicy broth, it has just the right amount of heat. Serve it over fluffy jasmine rice or spoon it over noodles for a seafood dish with a delicious twist.

Back in South Africa, we used to call monkfish 'poor man's lobster' because in those days, it was as cheap as chips. Unfortunately, these days, the price has soared as the popularity of monkfish has increased. However, I sometimes like to splash out and treat us to a tasty monkfish supper.

Hubby said 'can you make a curry out of it?' so it appeared that Thai prawn and monkfish curry was on the menu!

Monkfish is an excellent choice for curries because of its meaty texture and ability to hold its shape during cooking. Unlike more delicate white fish that may flake apart, monkfish stays firm and absorbs the aromatic flavors of the Thai curry, making it the ideal seafood companion to succulent prawns.

To provide freshness and texture, this Thai prawn and monkfish curry is packed with vegetables. Crisp green beans and pak choi, juicy cherry tomatoes, sweet red peppers and onions soak up the bold Thai flavours of the sauce, ensuring every bite is a delicious mix of spice and freshness.

The sauce is what makes this dish special. Thai red curry paste adds a fiery note, which is balanced by the citrus freshness of lemongrass and the umami richness of the fish sauce. The creaminess of coconut milk smoothes out the heat and creates a well-rounded, aromatic broth.

Apart from the flavours, I love how quick and easy it is to throw this Thai prawn and monkfish curry together. Once you've prepared all the vegetables, you only need half an hour to cook it, making this a dish that you can enjoy any night of the week

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Tips for a successful outcome
• Serving suggestions
• Variations
• Equipment
• Storage
• FAQ
• Save for later
• Related recipes
• 📋The recipe

Ingredients

This recipe will serve 4 people

Protein:

I used a mixture of monkfish and frozen prawns to make this dish:

• Monkfish - Monkfish is sold either as a whole tail (with a bone running through the middle) or ready filleted. It's easy to remove the middle bone - simply run a sharp knife down either side of the bone and you'll end up with 2 fillets. Luckily, there are no small bones in monkfish to worry about. Once you have monkfish fillets, just cut them into bite-sized pieces.
• Prawns (or shrimp if you live in the US) - For this recipe, I bought frozen raw prawns which had been cleaned (heads and back vein removed) but still had their shells on. Once defrosted, I peeled off the shell. You could also buy ready peeled prawns. I prefer using raw rather than ready-cooked prawns as I think they are juicier. Prawns that have been pre-cooked may toughen up when they are added to the curry.

Vegetables:

For the vegetables, you can use your own preference - here is what I used:

• Beansprouts - I normally keep a packet of fresh beansprouts in the freezer so I always have some to hand. They freeze perfectly and are ideal for cooking. For salads, obviously, you should use fresh beansprouts.
• Pak choi - I cut the leaves off the pak choi and add the stems to the stir fry first. This gives the stems time to cook through. The leaves are like spinach in that they wilt quickly, so I add them at the end along with the prawns and monkfish.
• Green beans - these should be topped and tailed and, depending on the length, should be cut into halves or thirds.
• Red pepper (or capsicum) - this should be deseeded and deveined and cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Onion - you will only need a small onion, which should be peeled and cut into slices. As you will see from the photo, I only had large onions available, so I used half.
• Cherry tomatoes - cut in half. You can substitute with an equal quantity of vine tomatoes, which should be finely diced.
• Bamboo shoots - these are optional, but they add a nice crunch to the dish. You will only need half of a small can. Any leftover bamboo shoots can be frozen and added to your next Chinese stir-fry.
• Garlic - this should be finely diced. It will be softened with the onions.

Sauce:

• Coconut milk - balances out the spiciness of the chilli and creates a smooth-tasting sauce.
• Thai red curry paste - use your favourite brand from a jar. If you prefer a milder curry, use Thai green curry paste instead.
• Lemongrass paste - Thai red curry paste normally contains lemongrass, but I find the brand I use isn't sufficient for my taste, so I like to add extra.
• Fish sauce - adds an umami flavour to the sauce.
• Lime juice - don't leave this out if possible - it adds a delicious fresh citrus taste to the sauce. Substitute with fresh lemon juice or bottled lime juice.

Other (not pictured):

• Salt - salt is to your own taste. I normally make the curry, then taste it and add salt if necessary.
• Sunflower oil - used to soften the vegetables. Substitute with any neutral-flavoured vegetable oil.
• Cornflour (or cornstarch) - this is optional and is only used if you prefer to thicken the sauce.

**You can get the exact ingredient measurements to make this Thai prawn and monkfish curry on the printable recipe card at the end of this post.**

Instructions

Garnish the curry with finely chopped coriander before serving.

Tips for a successful outcome

Here are my top tips to ensure your Thai prawn and monkfish curry always turns out perfectly:

• Saute the onions, peppers and garlic until the onions start to turn translucent. Rather than standing and stirring while the vegetables are cooking, I normally turn the heat to low and cover the pan with a lid while they soften. Check once or twice to make sure they are not catching - if so, turn the heat down further.
• Allow the tomatoes to soften in the same way. Softening the tomatoes ensures that they will break up easily in the sauce.
• Do let the curry paste and other aromatics fry gently to release their flavours.
• When adding the pak choi to the curry, add the stalks first. They take longer to cook than the softer leaves. The leaves will be added along with the seafood.
• The length of time the seafood cooks will depend on the size of the prawns and also on how large you cut the monkfish pieces. 6 to 8 minutes should be ample. The prawns will be cooked once they have turned pink, and the monkfish will flake slightly if you prod it with a fork.
• Only add salt once the curry has cooked to avoid over-salting. Sometimes, a shop-bought curry paste can be quite salty, and the fish sauce also adds a little salt to the dish.
• If you prefer a thicker sauce, stir in a slurry of cornflour and water to thicken. Take care and only stir in enough to thicken the sauce.

Serving suggestions

I like to serve this curry either piled on a bowl of fluffy jasmine rice, or spooned over freshly cooked Chinese noodles.

For a more substantial meal you could add a green salad and/or a slice of naan bread.

You might like to try this recipe for homemade garlic naan which is made with self-raising flour and Greek yoghurt, and mixes up in minutes.

Variations

I find that the Thai red curry paste provides sufficient heat. If you enjoy really spicy food you could chop up a bird's eye chilli and fry that with the onions. For an even bigger chilli hit, garnish with additional chopped chilli.

You can substitute the vegetables with vegetables of your choice. Sugar snap peas or mange tout make a nice addition, as do thinly sliced carrots. Just bear in mind the length of time that the vegetables will take to cook and add them at the appropriate time.

Equipment

This is the main equipment you will need to make a Thai prawn and monkfish curry:

• Saute pan or large saucepan (with a lid) - I tend to cook with a saute pan most of the time as it makes it easier to show the recipe steps in photographs. A large saucepan will do the job just as well.
• Sharp knife and chopping board - for cutting up the vegetables.
• Spatula - for stirring.

Storage

Leftover Thai prawn and monkfish curry can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator and reheated either in the microwave or in a saucepan on the stove.

You can also make this dish ahead of time and store it in the same way for up to three days. Reheat as above when you are ready to eat it.

You can freeze leftovers in a suitable freezer container for up to 3 months. Allow the curry to defrost in the refrigerator overnight and reheat as above.

FAQ

Save for later

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Related recipes

Visit my Asian-inspired recipes page for many similar recipes. Here are a few Thai-inspired recipes that you might enjoy:

📋The recipe

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