Gaeng Khiao Wan Pla — Green Curry with Fish / แกงเขียวหวานปลา

Central Thai and coastal Thai — fish green curry is common throughout Thailand's coastal regions

Fish green curry requires a different technique than the standard chicken version — the delicacy of fresh fish demands shorter cooking times, earlier attention to seasoning, and careful management of the coconut milk addition to avoid curdling around the protein. The best fish for green curry are firm-fleshed varieties (snapper, barramundi, kingfish, or wild-caught trout) cut into large medallions rather than fillets, as they hold shape better through the curry heat. The paste frying and coconut cracking proceed identically to chicken green curry, but the fish is added in the last 5 minutes of cooking and the wok is removed from heat while there is still some residual pink in the thickest part — carryover heat completes the cooking.

Fish green curry achieves a lighter, more delicate version of the curry's flavour profile than chicken — the clean, marine sweetness of good snapper against the bright herbal paste creates a more refined result than poultry-based curries.