Time: 45 Minutes

Servings: Serves 3

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 Chicken Breasts (cleaned and diced)
• 1 Yellow Onion
• 1 Carton Cremini Mushrooms (About 10)
• 3 Cups Chicken Broth
• 1 Can Coconut Milk
• 1 Tbsp. Brown Sugar
• 3 Tbsp. Fish Sauce
• 1 Stalk Lemon Grass
• 2 Tbsp. Ginger
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 3 Tbsp. Lime Juice
• 3 Small Vine Tomatoes
• 1-2 Tbsp. Red Curry Paste (depending on how spicy you like it)
• 1 Bunch Fresh Cilantro
• 2 Cups Rice (optional)

While we spend a lot of time in the Horazeck household exploring Southern and German food, my husband and I both love Asian cuisine. Sushi is our go-to take-out meal on late work nights, when neither one of us has time to cook. However, nothing makes him happier than Thai coconut soup. It only took about 8 years of watching him order it every time we went to a restaurant that served that offered a variation before I finally got the hint that I should develop my own recipe.

Like many Thai dishes, coconut soup is more of a category than an actual dish. Different regions and even families have their own variations and a quick internet search will show you that people can get quite opinionated about which ingredients to play up or pare down to arrive at the perfect flavor balance. This recipe is a little on the spicier side and features chicken as the main protein. You can easily make it more mild by reducing the red curry and increasing the coconut milk. Shrimp or additional mushrooms can also be substituted for seafood or vegetarian versions.

This soup is surprisingly easy and economical to make and has the amazing ability to fill you up without making you feel full. I am a big proponent of seasonal cooking, but this is one of the few recipes I cook year-round; summer nights, winter nights, busy nights, lazy nights, Thai coconut soup is the way to go.

 

Directions

Dice the chicken breasts and mushrooms into bite size pieces and reserve. Dice the onion and lemon grass. Score the lemon grass stalks and reserve. Add the vegetable oil to a large pan and sauté the diced onion and salt on medium high heat (about 5 minutes.) Add the chicken and mushrooms and cook until the chicken has turned white and the mushrooms are soft (8-10 minutes.) Add the ginger, red curry paste and diced lemon grass. Stir to mix the flavors.

Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the chicken broth. Add the lemon grass stalks and simmer for 10 minutes until the chicken broth has reduced by a third, stirring occasionally. Dice and add the tomatoes. Add the coconut milk, brown sugar, fish sauce and lime juice. Stir together and simmer for another 20 minutes.

Rough chop the cilantro and set aside in a separate boil for garnishing.

Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Additional option:

If you are looking for something more substantial than soup, this dish can easily become a curry by pouring it over rice. Place the rice in a small pot with 2 2/3 cups water. Turn on high heat. Once the water begins to boil turn the heat down to low and cover. Remove the lid and stir every five minutes until the rice is cooked through. Set on a warmer plate and reserve. I’d suggest placing the rice in your bowl first and serving the soup on top as a sauce. You may want to cook the soup down a bit more if you go this route.