Coconut Milk-Simmered Chicken Breasts With Vegetables
- Total Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 4boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 to 8 ounces each)
- Kosher salt
- 2tablespoons neutral oil, such as vegetable, canola or grapeseed oil
- 1large shallot, peeled and thinly sliced into rings
- 1large or 2 small garlic cloves, finely grated
- 1(2-inch) piece fresh ginger, finely grated (about 1½ tablespoons)
- 1small serrano chile or jalapeño, finely chopped, or more to taste
- ½cup chicken stock
- 1(14-ounce) can unsweetened, full-fat coconut milk
- 6ounces green beans, trimmed and halved crosswise
- 1ear fresh corn, kernels removed, or 1 cup frozen corn kernels
- ¼cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish
- 2limes (1 zested and juiced; 1 cut into wedges)
- Fish sauce (optional)
- Jasmine rice, for serving
- 16Sungold or other cherry tomatoes
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
604 calories; 34 grams fat; 21 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 28 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 7 grams sugars; 51 grams protein; 1268 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Season chicken breasts on both sides with salt. In a large (12-inch) lidded skillet, heat the oil over medium-low. Add the chicken, turn to coat with the oil, cover and cook until the thickest part feels springy to the touch, 4 to 5 minutes per side. (For best results, try not to let the chicken brown, and do not overcook; you’ll be cooking it more later.) Set the chicken aside on a warm plate, leaving any liquid in the skillet, and cover the chicken with foil.
- Step 2
Heat the skillet over medium. Add shallot and cook until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and chile, and cook for 1 minute. Add stock, raise heat to high and cook, scraping the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon, until thick and syrupy, about 1 minute.
- Step 3
Add the coconut milk and ½ teaspoon salt and bring to a boil. Stir in green beans and corn, and lower heat to medium-high for a steady simmer. Cover and cook until beans are crisp-tender but still bright, and coconut milk is slightly reduced, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Step 4
Add chopped cilantro and grated zest of the lime (saving a bit for the top), then season to taste with fish sauce, if using, and salt. Return chicken to the sauce, turning to coat, cover and cook until warmed and cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of the lime juice.
- Step 5
Slice each chicken breast. Serve over jasmine rice, then spoon the vegetables and sauce on top. Sprinkle with remaining lime zest, and garnish with tomatoes and cilantro leaves. Serve with lime wedges.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Bon V
The recipe calls for boneless chicken cutlets, but that is obviously NOT what was used in the photo. So which is it?
kmbap
Very flavorful recipe. I think most proteins could work here, but the chicken cutlets were very good. I mostly followed the recipe, but had to make a few substitutions based on what I had (red pepper flakes instead of chile, extra green beans and no corn, basil instead of cilantro). Used fish sauce instead of adding salt with the coconut mile. Overall, a hit.
Katy
For those of you who found it bland, did you add the optional fish sauce? (And ginger, lime juice, and hot pepper?) The ingredients are very similar to those in my Tom Kha Gai / Thai Coconut Chicken Soup recipe, in which fish sauce (or soy sauce) is not optional. I use 2 T fish sauce to one can of coconut milk.
Steve
I would brown bone in thighs for 15-20 minutes. Then simmer them until they reached 165 degrees internal temp, maybe 10 minutes. I think thighs would do well with this recipe.
Karen
Wow, this is fabulous. And it can be cut in half for two, or customized for one. I'm exploring cooking for one now (divorced, 18-year-old kid who's only here sometimes): making half of a good recipe, and taking the rest to work for lunch, or eating it for dinner later in the week. I made this with half the chicken, same amount of sauce, twice the veg. I ate about 1/4 of it tonight. And the result was so good that I can't wait to have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow, or dinner next week!
Helen
Bon V...the ingredients list does indeed call for cutlets but the recipe is called "Thai Inspired Chicken Coconut Breasts" and the description and instructions mention chicken breast, which is also used in the photo. You can use what you like - boneless chicken thigh would work well too.
Mary A.
Very tasty. Prep was a bit tedious however so. plan extra time for that. I added 1 thinly sliced red bell pepper and juice of whole lime . Also used 1 cup of broth. Good with corn but will probably try it without corn next time.
David
If you find it bland, are you salting the chicken breasts ahead of time? This is essential in a dish like this and it makes a huge difference - dry the breasts and sprinkle both sides with Diamond kosher salt at least an hour and up to 12 hours before cooking. Also, use the fish sauce - it adds saltiness, but also a key pulse of umami. We found this a delightful, flavorful dish and will definitely make it again.
Christian
Well, that was tedious. Result was good, but I question whether the juice was worth the squeeze. A fair amount of prep was involved, with grating and mincing of various ingredients. If I cooked this again, I'd reduce the broth by half again to get more intensity and thickness from the coconut mixture, add more fish sauce (only added a dash or two), and double the peppers.
EN
I leave out the corn and fish sauce and sometime replace green beans with frozen peas or other handy vegetable. Has turned out great every time even for an inexpert cook like me.
mudd
Yes, they’re cutlets! If you have an older recipe calling for boneless skinless breasts, do slice in half horizontally making cutlets. Modern supermarket breasts are Mae West.
Sherry
Thinking about using this recipe with shrimp replacing the chicken. I know I would reduce the cooking time and will add fresh basil. Any thoughts on this?
Laundy
Daughter-in-law made this for dinner last night. We all loved it especially the sauce. She eliminated cilantro since it tastes like soap to her. We did not miss it. We did discuss all the different meats/seafood/fish that could be used because the sauce is the star, here. We could not think of any other protein that it wouldn't pair well with. She added, as a side, cooked sweet potatoes from my husband's garden which were divine when the sauce "crept over" into them. Cod next with crab.
Lois
This was a good dish--could use a little tweaking, but I followed recipe to the letter. But for heavens sake, the prep took forever (12 ingredients in addition to the chicken, rice, tomatoes..--grating, slicing, chopping, zesting, juicing....) did anyone enjoy this dish enough to add it to their rotation of recipes??? Not I.
Steve
The final item on the ingredients list is “sungold or cherry tomatoes”. Step five says “garnish with tomatoes....”
Adam
Delicious! Ours turned into more of like a stew for some reason. Not sure how there was so much extra water content. But definitely saving this recipe to eat again. We had this with the Times recipe for the Limonada drink and they went well together. And instead of white rice to serve, I made a ginger turmeric rice.
Ashley
This recipe is amazing!! So much flavour, I’m shocked some people thought it was meh. Omitted the green beans, used kernels from 4 cobs, a red onion instead of the shallot, and doubled the tomatoes because that’s what I had on hand. But I could see most vegetables tasting delicious in this. Tofu could be a good sub for the chicken too. If you do use a lot more tomatoes I suggest simmering them with the sauce until they are just heated through- that way they don’t cool down the dish too much.
ellen11
This is a dish that punches way above its weight. I used boneless thighs because that’s what I had (and what I prefer). Definitely use the fish sauce. A wonderfully easy meal that makes a random Tuesday feel special.
Pamela
While others have mentioned this in their review, DO NOT follow this recipe as written with regular chicken breasts. The chicken will be undercooked. By the time it is safe to eat the chicken, the vegetables will be overcooked. So if you do not want to half your chicken breasts to make them work for this recipe, cook the chicken first in the coconut milk bath first before adding the vegetables. It is delicious winter recipe that needs some tweaking but worth the extra effort.
Karen
This was delicious! I doubled the garlic and ginger and might even add more next time. I was cautious only using a quarter of the jalapeño pepper and next time will use a whole one. I used boneless skinless chicken thighs which worked well. I served over farro with scallions. I'll will be making it again, maybe with bok choy in addition to or instead of beans.
V Brave
I used thin cut chicken breast tenders because I needed an even speedier weeknight meal. Turned out amazing. I did add fish sauce, pure delight!
DennisD
Excellent dish! I cooked two chicken tenderloins with the breasts, so added them in after the breasts were halfway cooked. I did not have green beans, so added match-stick cut zucchini when I added in the chicken at the end so it would not over cook. I did add about 1/2 T fish sauce and a little extra lime juice. Very, very good!
nat
My chicken came out chewy but otherwise great.
craig
I added 2 Serrano peppers, 2 spoons of fish sauce, and basically doubled the ginger & garlic it called for. Definitely added way more flavor and gave it a nice but mild kick! Would remake again. So good!
melnom
This was a nice summer meal the Bay Area-light, seasonal, but still cozy for our cool temps. But baffled by the chicken cooking instructions. Sauté, poach, slice, then poach again? I followed them because they were so odd, but no idea why it has you cook them like this (you’re not browning them). Just poach them whole in the coconut milk/stock *or* save time and slice the chicken first and poach the pieces. Add the veg the last few minutes. Agreed that the fish sauce definitely isn’t optional.
Cookbybirth
This was good! I recommend pepper as well as salt on the chicken to give it more flavor. I don’t think it’s any more work than any other recipe for prep. Definitely the 30 min time is after prep.
jeanne
I used kale and it was great!
SF Home Chef
I followed the recipe almost exactly and found it flavorful. I used a 1/2 tbsp fish sauce. Next time I might add a second chili. I sliced the chicken and put it directly in the sauce at the end rather than spooning the sauce over.
chriss
This is a great recipe—I’ve made it many times. The flavors are so bright and work really well together. But it ALWAYS takes a full hour to make, especially if you add lots of extra vegetables—which I always do!
lisafaz
Actually, I love the prep. It's a meditative practice for me, so I added more vegetables! Red bell pepper, sliced sugar snaps (no green beans at the store), water chestnuts, zucchini, carrots... I feel like it's flexible. But it was absolutely delicious! This is definitely on my "make-again" list!
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