Green Curry Porridge
A green curry porridge to keep you cozy as the weather changes season. This is a great way to use up winter squash and any herbs you have on hand. Rice and coconut milk form the base, and you get a kiss of spicy from serrano chile.
This is a boisterous green curry porridge made with pan-toasted brown rice, spicy herb-packed green coconut broth, all punctuated with winter squash and lots of green onions. It's the kind of bowl that keeps you warm, full, and happy from the inside out.
Green Curry Porridge: Variations
A good number of you have made this over the years. Here are a few stand-out riffs on the recipe from the comments. Over here, sometimes we like to serve it with a poached egg on top. Other times we work in some chickpeas and a bit of pan-fried tofu to top things off.
- Mix it up! Drops of Jupiter swapped out the rice…”My boyfriend made this last night substituting rice with a high fibre grain mix (wheat, buckwheat, rice, chinese barley, wild rice) and it was stupendous! we didn’t even saute the rice. We used organic veg broth and in place of sorrel, baby spinach and arugula that was lying in the fridge. Eating this for lunch now too as it makes for great leftovers.”
- Other squash: Claire notes, “ I used acorn squash, stirred in some tofu, and garnished with chopped peanuts”
The key with this recipe is to get the seasoning right. If you under salt, it'll be bland. So, pay close attention. You also want it to have nice acidity from a generous squeeze of lime, a kick of spiciness from the chile pepper, and a jolt of green from the sorrel or spinach, cilantro, and green onions. The creamy coconut milk brings it all together. You can dial any of the variables to your liking and, of course, experiment with other toppings.
More delicata squash recipes
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Green Curry Porridge
If you remember, soak your rice overnight. Drain before jumping into the recipe. On the sorrel front, use it if you have it! But don’t worry if you can’t source it. An alternative is to use spinach and a splash of lime juice. If you use a winter squash, something other than delicata squash, consider peeling it first. Also! This recipe can easily be doubled and cooked an extra-large pot. The leftovers are well worth it.
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemongrass, minced
- 4 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground coriander (seeds)
- 1 3/4 cups uncooked brown rice
- 5 cups water
- 2 1/2 teaspoons fine grain sea salt, plus more to taste
- 1 14- ounce can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger, peeled
- 1 medium serrano chile, stemmed and chopped
- 1 cup cilantro, plus more for serving
- 1 cup chopped green onions
- 1 cup sorrel (or 1 cup spinach + 2 T. lime juice)
- 1 medium delicata squash, halved, deseeded, cut into thin 1/4-inch thick crescents
- For serving: chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, lime wedges, olive oil
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To a large pot over medium heat, add the olive oil, lemongrass, garlic, coriander, and rice. Stir constantly until the rice kernels are toasted and fragrant, 7-10 minutes. Add the water, slowly, while stirring. The heat will cause the water to bubble. Stir in 2 teaspoons of the salt and bring to a simmer. After 10 minutes or so, stir in the squash. Continue simmering for another 15 minutes or so, until the rice is cooked through and is completely tender. If you see a good amount of split rice grains, you’re done.
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In the meantime, combine the coconut milk, ginger, serrano chile, cilantro, half of the green onions, sorrel, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a high-speed blender. If you don’t have a traditional blender, an immersion blender will work here. Blend until smooth, then taste and adjust, if needed.
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Add the herbed coconut milk to the porridge. Stir gently, and simmer for another 10 minutes or just until the squash is completely tender. Taste for seasoning and adjust to your liking.
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To serve, ladle the porridge into bowls and top each with chopped green onion, a small heap of chopped cilantro, a drizzle of olive oil, and a wedge of lime.
Serves 4-6.
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Comments
Heidi, when I saw this, I was immediately reminded of your coconut milk, cilantro, serrano salad dressing that I absolutely love. I just finished making it for my birthday dinner and it didn’t disappoint! I halved the recipe and all the cooking times were right on. Our grocery didn’t have lemongrass or squash, but I didn’t miss it. It’s so easy to make – a blender and my Dutch oven…voila! 🙂 thank you!
I just made this and it was delicious! I used butternut squash which took an age to cook, must cut smaller next time!
Also, I’m thinking some red lentils would work really well in this next time.
That sounds delicious and mixes some components together that I haven’t used combined before. Hopefully I’ll find fresh cilantro (not that easy to get here or easily sold out).
BTW I love your photos, all really great. I tried food photography myself and this gives me some inspiration. I think I need to find some antique dishes, those look great 🙂
Hi Heidi,
I wish more commenters here posted after trying the recipe rather than just saying “this looks great” (which it always does, of course).
My boyfriend made this last night substituting rice with a high fibre grain mix (wheat, buckwheat, rice, chinese barley, wild rice) and it was stupendous! we didn’t even saute the rice. We used organic veg broth and in place of sorrel, baby spinach and arugula that was lying in the fridge. Eating this for lunch now too as it makes for great leftovers.
great work, Heidi..it’s humble yet grand recipes like this why I buy your cookbooks and visit your blog so regularly.
P.S. to those wondering if this counts as green curry, YES it does. In the south of India, we prepare a lentil and spinach based curry that is quite similar to this!
Sounds great! Love the grain mix idea. And thanks for the nice note 🙂
Currently making this for dinner, and it smells delicious, but it is taking *exponentially* longer to cook than expected…the rice took more like 50 mins to get mostly cooked, and the squash has been in for 20 so far and is still hard. I thought this would be a quick weeknight meal but apparently not 🙁 I hope it will at least taste good!
HS: Hi Karen – I hope it was worth it. Some rices definitely take longer to cook than others. Apologies. And if you give it another go, slice the squash a bit more thinly it will cut down on cooking time.
this is my idea of a happy meal ! yum!
I made this last night with the suggested spinach/lime replacement for sorrel (can’t ever find sorrel) plus acorn squash and it was insanely good. As noted in other comments, a wonderfully welcome new comfort dish for the lingering midwestern winter! I love the idea for chopped peanuts.
HS: Glad you gave it a go Keri!
I made this dish this weekend too. Delicious! Couldn’t find delicata squash but did find a package of patty pan squash which I sliced thin. Definitely a keeper! Yum.
Made this delicious dish last week, and it’s my husband’s new favorite (at the head of a line of many recipes from this site!). I used acorn squash, stirred in some tofu, and garnished with chopped peanuts. Thanks!
Good morning. I made this curry yesterday. With spinch and lime. It is wonderful; fragrant, warming and bright. Quick enough for a week day dinner. Just perfect for this endless winter in Canada. And so happy you are shipping here now! Thank you.
I made this dish yesterday. It was a huge hit and is definitely on my all-time favorite list. I didn’t have lemongrass, so I used lemon zest, but I look forward to trying it again with lemongrass.
Your dish sounds absolutely delish. Would you be able to substitute the brown rice for white basmati rice and still have a similar effect? or would the texture be unsatisfactory? Thanks again
It would be a bit of a different beast, but you should give it a go!
Hello – just checking: does the ginger go into the coconut sauce mixture?
HS: It does Rachael – with the serrano and cilantro, etc.
I love brown rice porridges! I will give this one a shot–Happy Nesting.
Doesn’t the Green Curry Porridge recipe call for either some green curry paste or some curry powder?
Hi Jon – So no, no paste needed – just the herbs and whatnot – you end up making a green curry milk instead of a paste….Still very flavor forward.
I love all of your fresh recipes where you use cilantro, lemongrass, or coconut milk – and have made quite a few at this point! Curious if this will travel well – I usually prep to take things in for lunch.
HS: I think it will! I mean, a quick reheat would be ideal…but aside from that, it might even be improved by melding together for a time.
I am currently trying a low fodmap diet to deal with digestive issues. If I could get coconut milk without the guar gum (not ok) locally I would have used it but ended up trying lactose free kefir instead. No fresh lemon grass locally, but I had a supply of dried which I put in a muslin bag and added to the rice as it cooked. The only other changes include no using the white part of the onion (not allowed) and adding squash to the rice as it cooked instead of in the end as I wasn’t sure if I could actually simmer kefir. It was delicious! Maybe I’ll survive this diet after all.
By “green onion tops” do you mean the green or white parts? I may be just dense but I want to follow the recipe properly. I’m figuring the dark green parts but “top” and “bottom” can be relative depending on the chef (and regardless of which end grows into the ground). So I just wanted to make sure. If this is anywhere near as good as your miso oat porridge I will be thrilled (and I’m sure it will be). I love your recipes Heidi. Thank you so much.
HS: Hi Dondi – by tops, I mean the green parts 🙂 Apologies for not being more specific. And, so happy to hear you liked the miso oat porridge!
Your green curry porridge looks fabulous! There are so many flavors that I love-ginger, cilantro, garlic, coconut milk-and the list goes on. Can’t wait to give this a try! Thanks for another great recipe!
it’s like you have the magic words to my belly…
I can almost smell the broth right now. In bed sick and this would be so very welcome. I love how your dishes look so substantial and colorful.
That’s no good Angela! Hope you’re on the mend soon. xo
I love the herb flavoured coconut milk you have added to this Porridge. I love EV olive oil too, but would swap it here for a flavourless ( ie more Asian) one.
That looks really good! I might try it with seafood or steamed fish for a bit more protein!
HS: I’ve been having it with a poached egg on top – thumbs up!
Heidi-Love your attention to detail, and how your photogenic dishes seem to come from little to nothing in the kitchen. Not familiar with sorrel and haven’t used lemon grass much, but now I have an invitation. I’m already in love with basmati rice, so I’ll be using the brown.
Thank you for another great post!
Gosh, Heidi, your work in and out of the kitchen is so inspirational. I can tell the flavors here are bold in a very good way. What a great lightened up twist on a curry
I eat porridge every morning but never thought about making it savoury. Somehow, this sounds oddly delightful. Must try it soon.
This looks like the perfect recipe for dinner!
Perfect idea for a relentless winter, here in the mid-west. I love curry and this porridge seems just the ticket to get me out of here, even for just one meal.
The herbs with the coconut milk sound lovely. The perfect way to combat another arctic blast here in Michigan!
This almost sounds like a risotto soup! Loving the ingredients listed 😀 The thought of a savoury porridge is a little odd, as I have tried to make one once but failed miserable (don’t try and add fry-up breakfast ingredients to oats…it wont work :P), but this looks delicious! I might have to have another go at it 🙂 x
This recipe looks like such a fab dinner or lunch! I love the sorrel in there!
Mmmm… this is more like it, porridge with kick in the pants. Yay for your Aussie fans like me! Can you give us the places it stocks?
sooo delicious….. I am in Mexico for the winter the rest of the year in Canada… I am so lucky and spoiled to have so many great markets back home…. with a wee bit of improvising I had everything in my refrigerator and just made this with a few additions…. added basil and kefir lime leaves….. wow amazingly good.
I didn’t see the ginger in the directions so I added at the beginning with the garlic, lemongrass, coriander and rice. I love everything you post…. pure inspiration.
HS: Love the quick turnaround Paula! And I’m imagining the lime leaves would be a welcome addition. Wouldn’t mind being in Mexico right now myself! xo
Ohoh! Here at home we love Curry, especially the Panaeng curry from Thailand but we will try your recipe very soon! Thanks for sharing!
This looks ridiculously delicious. It must be in my belly stat.
Looks delicious!!
What a beautiful dish, sounds like it’s full of flavour and something a bit different!
Can see how lots of grains could work for this exciting flavour combination. Pearl barley, maybe?
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