Gordon Ramsay’s Thai green curry rice is fragrant jasmine rice stir-fried with a homemade green curry paste of fresh chillies, lemongrass, ginger, and lime leaves. The whole dish takes about 10 minutes once the paste is blitzed.
This recipe comes from the Ultimate Home Cooking cookbook and the TV episode where Ramsay cooks it with his son Jack as part of a Southeast Asian dinner. He calls it “incredible” and says the paste “takes minutes to make, but it will keep for up to 10 days if covered with oil and stored in a sealed jar in the fridge.”
The step that separates this from every other green curry rice recipe is frying the paste on its own for 2 full minutes before the rice touches the pan. Raw paste tastes sharp and grassy, so that time in hot oil is what transforms the fresh herbs into something deep and fragrant.
Gordon Ramsay Thai Green Curry Rice
Course: Side DishCuisine: ThaiDifficulty: Easy4
servings5
minutes7
minutes195
kcal12
minutesA quick Southeast Asian side from Ramsay’s Ultimate Home Cooking. Fresh green curry paste blitzed from scratch and fried until aromatic, then tossed with cold jasmine rice. Roughly 195 kcal per serving as a side dish.
Ingredients
- For the curry paste:
2 large green chillies
1 garlic clove, peeled and roughly chopped
1 lemongrass stalk, roughly chopped
2 kaffir lime leaves
3cm (1 inch) piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and chopped
Small bunch of fresh coriander (about 15g)
1 shallot, peeled and chopped
Juice of 1 lime
1-2 tbsp groundnut oil
Pinch of sea salt and black pepper
- For the rice:
300g (10 oz) cooked jasmine rice, day-old or chilled for at least 4 hours
1 tbsp groundnut oil
Lime wedges, to serve
Directions
- Make the paste: Put the green chillies, garlic, lemongrass, lime leaves, ginger, coriander, shallot, and lime juice into a food processor with 1-2 tablespoons of groundnut oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Blitz until smooth.
- Fry the paste: Place a large frying pan or wok over a medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of oil. When hot, add all the curry paste and stir over the heat for about 2 minutes until aromatic. The kitchen should smell fragrant before anything else goes in.
- Add the rice: Tip the cold rice into the pan and stir well to coat every grain in the paste. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the rice is heated through. Add another splash of oil if it starts sticking.
- Serve: Transfer to a serving bowl and serve immediately with lime wedges on the side to squeeze over.
FAQs
Why does Ramsay fry the paste before adding rice?
Raw curry paste has a sharp bite because the essential oils in the lemongrass and chillies haven’t been released yet. Frying the paste in hot oil for 2 minutes toasts those compounds and draws out the fragrance, which is why Ramsay waits until it smells aromatic before anything else goes in.
It’s the same approach he uses in his Thai red curry, where the paste always hits hot oil first. Stirring cold paste straight into rice just coats the grains with raw herbs instead of seasoning them.
Can you use shop-bought paste instead of homemade?
Ramsay is clear that homemade is better. Jar pastes lean on salt and vinegar as preservatives, which drowns the fresh herb flavour you want here.
If time is tight, squeeze fresh lime juice and stir chopped coriander into a quality jar paste before frying. That brings back some of the brightness. Ramsay’s homemade curry paste is worth making in bulk because it freezes well.
Why does the rice need to be cold?
Freshly cooked rice is soft and damp, so it breaks apart the second it hits a hot pan. Ramsay specifies rice “chilled for at least 4 hours” or left overnight, because refrigeration dries the surface of each grain.
Dry grains fry properly and stay separate instead of clumping into mush. If you forgot to plan ahead, spread hot rice on a baking tray and refrigerate uncovered for 30 minutes. The same cold-rice rule applies to his spicy sausage rice when you want each grain distinct.
How long does homemade green curry paste keep?
In the episode, Ramsay says “up to 10 days if covered with oil and stored in a sealed jar in the fridge.” The oil layer blocks air and slows oxidation, which is what turns fresh herbs brown and bitter.
You can also freeze portions in ice cube trays for up to 3 months. Pop out a cube whenever you want a quick curry or stir-fry base without the prep.
What else can you make with this paste?
In the same episode, Ramsay says to “simply add to chicken, fish, or veg to create a fantastic meal in minutes.” Stir a tablespoon into coconut milk for an instant sauce, or rub it onto chicken thighs before roasting.
He actually serves this rice alongside his sticky chicken wings in the show, which makes a brilliant pairing. The sweet tamarind glaze on the wings balances the heat from the curry paste perfectly.
Does this store well?
Not brilliantly, if I’m being honest. The paste loses its brightness overnight and reheated fried rice goes a bit claggy. This is best eaten straight from the pan.
If you do have leftovers, reheat in a hot wok with a splash of water and a squeeze of fresh lime to bring back the flavour. Avoid the microwave because it dries the rice out unevenly. For tips on getting the base rice right before adding the paste, see how Ramsay cooks his rice.
