Thai Lemongrass soup - Tom Kha Gai

The classic soup from Thailand

Yield:
6 servings
Category:
Soup
Cuisine:
Thai

INGREDIENTS:

  • 6 oz. shiitake, oyster, or maitake mushrooms, stemmed, caps cut into bite-size pieces
  • 450 g skinless, boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 2cm pieces
  • 400 g carrots, peeled and cut into 1 cm diced cubes
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped fine
  • 4 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger
  • 10 kaffir lime leaves or 1 Tbsp. lime zest and ¼ cup lime juice
  • 2 stalks lemongrass (bottom half only) split lengthwise and cut into 2” pieces
  • 1-2 red chili peppers (Thai, Serrano, or jalapeno), sliced finely
  • 2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce (such as nam pla or nuoc nam)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
  • 2 13 oz. cans coconut milk, stirred
  • 10 cups vegetable or chicken stock
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
  • salt and black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Bring the stock to a boil over medium heat in a soup pot. Add the lime leaves, chilies, garlic, ginger, and lemongrass. Lower the heat to medium-low; cover the pot and gently simmer to let the spices infuse the broth, about 10 minutes.
  2. Add chicken and carrots, and return to a boil. Reduce heat, add mushrooms, and simmer, skimming occasionally, until chicken is cooked through and mushrooms and carrots are soft
  3. Stir in the coconut milk, fish sauce, sugar, and lime juice. Simmer about 5-8 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Ladle the soup into a soup tureen or individual serving bowls. Garnish with the cilantro. Be careful to avoid chewing the lemongrass, or lime leaves.

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