Name: Thai red tofu curry with vegetables
Total time: 70 min
Yield: 4 bowls with brown rice
Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups dry brown jasmine rice, rinsed; 1 tbsp coconut oil; 1 small onion, chopped; 1/4 tsp fine salt; 1 tbsp grated ginger; 2 garlic cloves, minced; 2 bell peppers, thin strips; 3 carrots, 1/4-inch slices; 2 tbsp Thai red curry paste labeled vegetarian, without shrimp or fish; 1 can (14 oz) full-fat coconut milk; 1/2 cup water for curry; 1 1/2 cups finely sliced kale, stems removed; 1 1/2 tsp brown sugar; 1 block (14 oz) firm tofu, drained and cut into 1-inch cubes; 1 tbsp soy sauce; 2 tsp rice vinegar; 2 tbsp chopped basil; Water as needed for the stated boiling, soaking, steaming or water-bath step; discard unless a reserved amount is specified

Thai red tofu curry with vegetables

Thai red tofu curry with coconut milk, peppers, carrots and kale. Makes four bowls with brown rice; includes the rice cooking and resting stages in the 70-minute estimate.

Published October 2, 2026 · Updated October 16, 2026

4 bowls with brown rice · Estimated 1 hour 10 minutes

Tofu, peppers, carrots and kale in red coconut curry beside rice in a white bowl

Ingredients & method

Before you start: Prepare: 20 minutes · Boil rice and make curry in parallel: 40 minutes · Rice rest and finish: 10 minutes

Equipment: Rice pot; deep skillet

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Method

Rinse the brown jasmine rice and drain it. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the rice and boil for 30–40 minutes, until the grains are tender; begin making the curry while the rice cooks.
Prepare the onion, grated ginger and minced garlic, cut the bell peppers into thin strips and slice the carrots ¼ inch thick. Remove the kale stems and slice the leaves finely, then drain the firm tofu and cut it into 1-inch cubes.
Heat the coconut oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and fine salt and cook for 5 minutes, stirring, until the onion softens.
Stir in the ginger and garlic for 30 seconds. Add the peppers and carrots and cook for 5 minutes, turning them through the onion mixture so they begin to soften evenly.
Add the Thai red curry paste labeled vegetarian and free of shrimp or fish. Stir for 2 minutes to distribute it over the vegetables, keeping it moving across the bottom of the skillet.
Add the full-fat coconut milk, ½ cup curry water, sliced kale, brown sugar and tofu. Stir gently to combine without breaking the tofu, then bring the sauce to a gentle simmer.
Simmer for 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the carrots and peppers are tender and the tofu is hot throughout. Meanwhile, when the rice is tender, drain off its boiling water, return the rice to its pot and rest covered off the heat for 10 minutes.
Take the curry off the heat and stir in the soy sauce and rice vinegar. Fluff the rested rice and divide it among 4 bowls, spoon the curry over it and finish with the chopped basil.

Start the brown rice before the curry

This Thai red tofu curry includes brown jasmine rice in its ingredients and yield. The rice is boiled in a large pot of water, then drained and rested covered off the heat. It is not cooked by absorbing the curry's half-cup of water; keep those two water jobs separate.

Begin the vegetable preparation while the rice boils. Carrots sliced to the stated quarter-inch thickness, thin pepper strips and finely sliced stemmed kale suit the curry's cooking stages. Have the drained tofu cut into its one-inch cubes before the coconut milk goes into the skillet.

Check the curry paste and keep the tofu pieces intact

Use the red curry paste labeled vegetarian and free of shrimp or fish, as the ingredient list requires. A jar's red color alone does not tell you its ingredients. Measure the paste before its short cooking stage and keep it moving over the vegetables before adding the coconut milk and curry water.

Fold the tofu through gently once the liquid is added. This method heats firm tofu in the sauce; it does not include a separate frying or crisping stage. Check that the carrots and peppers are tender and the tofu is hot throughout before the off-heat soy sauce and rice vinegar finish.

Bring the rice rest and curry finish together

When the rice is tender, drain it and use its covered rest as directed while the curry completes its own simmer. Judge both pans separately rather than extending one simply because the other is still cooking. The listed seventy-minute estimate includes preparation, parallel cooking and the rice rest.

Fluff the rice before dividing it among four bowls. Spoon the curry over each share, reaching for tofu and vegetables as well as sauce, then add the basil. The coconut milk belongs in the curry; the rice is a separate component until the bowls are assembled.

Thai red tofu curry with vegetables

Ingredients & method

Start the brown rice before the curry

Check the curry paste and keep the tofu pieces intact

Bring the rice rest and curry finish together

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