Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs (Whole 30)

Sep 21, 2020 | Soups and Stews, Turkey

Easy Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs cooked in a flavorful coconut milk sauce with a kick of green curry spice. This curry is the perfect weeknight paleo, Whole30, and keto meal!

Easy Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs cooked in a flavorful coconut milk sauce with a kick of green curry spice. This curry is the perfect weeknight paleo, Whole30, and keto meal!

 

Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs (Whole 30)

As soon as the temperatures start dropping I begin planning lots of curry dinners. Ok, who am I kidding? I’m making curry no matter what temperature it is out. There are some meals that are always worth turning on the heat for, no matter how poorly your AC works. My love for curry knows no bounds, and no climate. We will do anything to be together.

To be honest, for a while I didn’t like making my own curry because it’s so good when you get it from a great Thai restaurant. Top Thai in Greenwich Village is my absolute favorite Thai place–one I ate at 7 nights in a row last December it was so good. But sadly I’ve had to stay away from NYC a lot longer than expected due to COVID, so I’ve had to work on being ok with making my own, and with enough trial and error I’ve gotten my homemade version lot closer to the beloved Top Thai curry.

I usually make my curry with chicken but I tried making this round with some turkey meatballs and I loved it! The meatballs hold their moisture better than chicken and they also pick up a lot of the curry spices–holy yum.

 

Easy Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs cooked in a flavorful coconut milk sauce with a kick of green curry spice. This curry is the perfect weeknight paleo, Whole30, and keto meal!

What is curry?

There are both Thai and Indian curries, but for the sake of this recipe I’m focusing on Thai curries, which are made with a curry paste and coconut milk (as opposed to the former which is made of a blend of cumin and coriander spices.) It’s an easy dish made from simmering spices and coconut milk to form a delicious sauce and serving it over protein and vegetables. In this case, I made turkey meatballs, though I also love a simple chicken curry. It’s a perfect weeknight meal that is naturally paleo, dairy-free, keto, and whole 30!

Easy Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs cooked in a flavorful coconut milk sauce with a kick of green curry spice. This curry is the perfect weeknight paleo, Whole30, and keto meal!

What you’ll need to make Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs:

Curry is such a versatile meal that you can mix and match to suit what you have on hand. Don’t have green curry paste? Red will do! Don’t have bok choy? Use broccoli or another vegetable! It’s hard to go wrong here. Here’s what I recommend, but feel free to customize your curry to suit what you have:

  • Coconut oil
  • Garlic: Use fresh garlic if available
  • Ginger: Fresh ginger is always the way to go in my book: it’s the best flavor add and has the best health benefits!
  • Bok Choy:
  • Zucchini sliced into ribbons (or spiralized): You can even chop these up if spiralizing isn’t your thing!
  • Ground turkey, or the ground meat of your choice.
  • Egg: Just 1 to help bind the meatballs. You can omit this and the meatballs will still hold together.
  • Full fat coconut milk: Don’t skimp on this and use low fat! It won’t be the same
  • Low sodium chicken broth: just a regular bone broth or plain chicken broth will do! Use vegetable broth if making this vegan
  • Green curry paste: I use Thai brand curry paste
  • Coconut aminos (or soy sauce): I use coconut aminos in so many of my recipes–they’re a natural way to add sweetness and a soy-sauce taste to dished while keeping everything gluten/grain free. I get mine from Thrive Market!
  • Lime: I love adding a fresh squeeze of lime to offset the spicy curry
  • Basil: Basil is the perfect complement to curry, especially when it’s in season!
  • Chopped scallions, for serving
  • Cauliflower rice or regular rice

Tips for making Easy Paleo Thai Curry and Meatballs:

Aside from the taste, the best thing about curry is how healthy and easy it is! Here are a few

  • Sub the turkey for ground chicken or beef if preferred.
  • Use good quality coconut milk—I like to use the full fat stuff for the extra flavor. Trust me, you’ll be glad you did!
  • Don’t skimp on the curry paste! I use Thai brand.
  • If you’d like a red curry, you could swap the green curry paste for red.
  • Don’t be intimidated–this is one of the easiest yet most flavorful dishes!
  • Leftover curry makes a great weekday lunch!

 

Easy Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs cooked in a flavorful coconut milk sauce with a kick of green curry spice. This curry is the perfect weeknight paleo, Whole30, and keto meal!

More Paleo Curry Recipes:

Without further ado, it’s time to make some delicious curry! I’d love to see your beautiful creations so don’t forget to tag me on Instagram or Facebook!

Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs

Easy Paleo Thai Coconut Curry Meatballs cooked in a flavorful coconut milk sauce with a kick of green curry spice. This curry is the perfect weeknight paleo, Whole30, and keto meal!

COURSE Main Course
Cuisine Thai
PREP TIME 10 minutes
COOK TIME 25 minutes
SERVINGS 4

INGREDIENTS

For meatballs:

  • 1 lb ground turkey
  • 1 scallion thinly sliced
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 1 tbsp coconut aminos
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp tapioca starch
  • 1 egg

For curry:

  • 1 tbsp coconut oil
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 inch fresh grated ginger
  • 1 baby bok choy
  • 1 can full fat coconut milk
  • 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 2 tbsp green curry paste
  • 2 tbsp coconut aminos
  • juice from 1/2 lime
  • 2 zucchini sliced into ribbons
  • 1/4 cup fresh basil
  • Sliced scallions for serving
  • 4 cups cooked cauliflower rice for serving.

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a bowl combine all meatball ingredients. Roll into roughly 12 meatballs (or 15 small ones) and place on the baking sheet.
  3. Bake for 15 minutes, turning partway through to brown evenly. Remove from oven and set aside.
  4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
  5. Add ginger and garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add bok choy and saute for another 3-4 minutes to soften.
  6. Pour in coconut milk, curry paste, broth, coconut aminos, and lime juice and stir well to combine. Add in meatballs. Bring the curry to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes. Add zucchini ribbons to the sauce to soften, and cook for another 5 minutes. Top off with sliced scallions and fresh basil.

  7. Divide cooked cauliflower rice into bowls and top with meatball curry. Enjoy!

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Hey! I’m Moriah– a commercial and editorial food photographer and creative entrepreneur who is perpetually drinking coffee and covered in dog hair. I write this blog from New York City where I run my creative agency, The B Edit. I write this blog in the hopes that you can one day have your creative dream job, too!   

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