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When you’re in need of warming comfort food, this vibrant, wholesome Coconut Curry Chicken Meatball Soup with Rice is just the creamy soup to make. Made with chicken, ginger, sweet potatoes, warming spices, and creamy coconut milk. It requires just one pot and can be made in under an hour’s time. It’s cozy, a little spicy, and filled with vegetables. Finish each bowl off with steamed rice and you’ll have the perfect bowl of creamy, curry soup. Fresh naan on the side is highly recommended!
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During these late fall days and into November I find myself repeating the same flavors over and over. Lots of cheese pasta, caramelized onions, and slow-cooked chicken. I’m using plenty of sage, apples, and pumpkin – basically all the most delicious fall flavors.
And the truth is, I LOVE every single recipe. These are my favorite recipes to create. But I’ve finally hit that time of the year when I need a little more. I start to look for something bold in flavor with spice and color.
I put on my thinking cap for a minute and I brainstorm. This was me last week. I needed to switch things up!
I’ve been missing cooking for my older brother, Creighton. so I used Creighton and the foods he loves for some inspiration.
There is nothing Creighton loves more than a spicy curry. It can be Indian or Thai-inspired, he loves it all. And he loves meatballs. I put curry and meat together and this is what I got.
Truly the most delicious bowl of warming spicy flavors are in this chicken meatball soup recipe.
The details
Start with the chicken meatballs. I love to make meatballs because you can really season them up with flavor. I mixed ground chicken (you could also do ground turkey, ground beef, or ground pork) with shallots, and ginger, and then added a splash of tamari for saltiness.
Once the meatballs are together, the rest is easy. Sear the meatballs in a pot. I usually just use a medium size soup pot or dutch oven.
Then pull the meatballs out and set them aside. To that same pot, I add red curry paste, curry powder, another shallot, more ginger, and some garlic. Cook everything together until fragrant.
Now pour in the chicken broth and add the sweet potato. Simmer the sweet potato until it becomes soft, then stir in the coconut milk, spinach, and meatballs. Allow everything to cook together until the soup thickens.
The soup should be creamy and almost more like a curry than a soup, just slightly thinner than a curry.
Serve over steamed rice and top with sesame oil. You can add some cilantro or parsley if you like too! And of course, I recommend naan for scooping up all the creamy, coconutty broth/sauce.
So flavorful, full of color, and filled with good-for-us ingredients. It’s the creamiest, most flavorful bowl. And lastly, the leftovers – they taste even better the following day. The flavors have time to mend, and the broth is even more delicious. Just store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Looking for other warming fall dinners? Here are a few ideas:
Better For You Chicken and Spinach Ramen
Creamy Butternut Squash Butter Chicken
30 Minute Spicy Indian Butter Chicken
Coconut Milk Braised Black Pepper Chicken
Coconut Sweet Potato Lentil Soup with Rice
Lastly, if you make this Coconut Curry Chicken Meatball Soup with Rice be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Coconut Curry Chicken Meatballs Soup with Rice
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 2 small shallots, chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
- 2 teaspoons tamari or soy sauce
- black pepper + kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 cup cubed sweet potatoes
- 2 (14 ounce) cans coconut milk
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 2 cups cooked basmati rice
- 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- toasted chili sesame oil
Instructions
- 1. In a bowl, combine the chicken, 1 shallot, 1 tablespoon ginger, tamari, and a pinch of pepper, Coat your hands with a bit of oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-16 meatballs).2. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a medium pot. Add the meatballs and sear until crisp, about 4-5 minutes, turning them 2-3 times. Transfer to a plate.3. To the same pot, add the curry paste, curry powder, 1 shallot, 1 tablespoon ginger, and the garlic. Cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth and sweet potatoes. Cover and cook over medium heat until the potato is tender about 10 minutes. Add the coconut milk and spinach. Simmer, uncovered another 5-10 minutes, until thickened slightly. Slide the meatballs back into the soup. Stir in the cilantro. Season with salt. 5. Divide the rice among bowls and ladle the soup and meatballs overtop. Drizzle with chili oil. Serve with Naan on the side. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Excellent, but I did make a few changes. I didn’t have sweet potatoes, so I used butternut squash. I also added a little curry paste, cayenne, red pepper flakes, & an egg to the meatballs. Instead of rice, I added some coconut rice stick noodles I had left over from another one of your recipes.
Hey Djienne,
Amazing!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review:)
Needs more flavor and less coconut. If I did it again I would probably only use 1-1.5 cans of coconut milk and more chicken broth. I put probably twice as much sweet potato and that turned out perfect! You need Probably twice as much soy sauce and ginger in the meatballs too to give them the best flavor!
Hey there,
Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! So sorry to hear it was not enjoyed! Please let me know if there is anything that I can do! xx
The flavors were good though it needed more salt and maybe spice earlier (e.g. in the meatballs). The soup also could have used more veggies or something to give it more weight (maybe even just more sweet potato). It was pretty brothy. I made coconut rice with lime rather than plain rice.
Hey Joyce,
Happy Monday!! 🍁 Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it! xT
Made this tonight! Super easy and delicious! I can’t have white rice so used quinoa— worked fine! Thank you!
Hey Mary,
Happy Monday!! 🍁 Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it! xT
Love this recipe! So delicious. Also added some shiitake mushrooms to mine which was great. The drizzle of chili sesame oil at the end was key!!
Hey Alexa,
Happy Monday!! 🍁 Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it! xT
Excellent! 😍
Hey Heather,
Happy Monday!! 🍁 Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it! xT
The meatballs did not have much flavor. Broth was just ok. This is one of the few recipes of Half Baked Harvest that I will not make again.
Hi Sue,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear it was not enjoyed! xx
I loved this recipe! The only thing I did different was added a little more of the seasonings and chicken broth because I had used my electric emulsifier and pureed the sweet potatoes after they simmered, then had to add more chicken stock to make it more “soupy”
Hey Lisa,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for giving it a try! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you! xT
Meatballs needs binder. Parts of recipe are poorly written. A rare miss from this site
Hi Mason,
So sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks so much for giving it a try! Please let me know what I can fix! xx
This was great! I was worried about my meatballs falling apart, so baked them instead, and it was still tasty. Also good with brown rice instead of white.
Hey Adrienne,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xT
Delicious!!
Thanks so much Audra! So glad the recipe was enjoyed! xT
I Thai’d and went to heaven! Followed the recipe (expect ground turkey, chicken wasn’t available) and this was a delicious recipe. Definitely satisfied my crave for Thai!
Hey Cynthia,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xT
This was so good. I didn’t have ground chicken (or any chicken), so I made with just the veggies. Loved it!
Hey Elena,
Happy Friday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review:)
Meatballs fell apart. But flavours great!
Hi Jen,
So sorry to hear your meatballs fell apart! You could try adding egg next time as a binder. Let me know! xT
Wanted to love this, but it just didn’t come together. Ground chicken meatballs fell apart when I tried to sear and cook them in the pan. Flavors were just okay together.
Hi Marie,
So sorry to hear you had some issues with this recipe!! Thanks so much for giving it a try, please let me know if there is anything that I can help with! xT