Thai Coconut Chicken Soup (Tom Kha Gai)
Prep Time: 30 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Serves: 6-7 people
There was a killer restaurant in a little neighborhood called the Virginia Highlands (in Atlanta) that I would walk to in my “post college years” that had this amazing Chicken Soup. They served it in a bowl with a burning sterno fire in the center…. I would always want to just lift and drink the whole thing from the bowl…but the fire would burn my face off…so I had to eat it like everyone else…with a spoon… I wish I could go there today and get some soup and their Spicy Beef Salad (recipe to come soon)…. It was the perfect dinner; soup, salad, a GIANT Sapporo beer or three, and walk home with my dog..fat and happy.
I spent a dozen years or so cooking that soup and trying to get the right mix of flavors. But the problem with cooking Asian food is that you have to balance the sweet\sour\salty\spicy…and it takes years to get this right. I used to live next to a little Filipino lady in Hawaii that could make the most amazing food, she learned from her mother, who learned from her mother, and so on. I can’t even hope to know how to cook like that, ever. She had nothing down on paper, she never really talked, she just cooked and kept handing you food, like grandmothers do….her food was unreal. She could mix the sweet\sour\salty\spicy like no chef I have ever seen. Pure magic. This is the key to Coconut Chicken Soup. You have to mix the sugar, fish sauce, garlic, coconut milk, and the chicken stock perfectly to get that awesome blend of flavors. Ok, so I hope I have not scared you too much, you can do this……..even for a first time cook, this soup will be really good, it just gets better every time you make it, trust me, try it……live a little, right?
So let’s go, here is what you need:
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (you can use chicken breasts…but the thigh is where it’s at…)
- 1 tbsp oil (vegetable oil is fine, canola is good, sunflower, avocado is cool…I don’t use olive oil here….)
- ½ Vidalia Onion…or any sweet onion diced
- 5 tsp ground fresh ginger
- 5 cloves crushed and minced fresh garlic
- 1 stalk lemon grass (rinsed)
- 2 tsp Sambal Oelek or Sriracha
- 4 tsp good fish sauce
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 3 green onions sliced thin
- 4 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice
- 1\2 cup cilantro (diced)
- 6 cups of good Chicken Stock
- 2 cans of unsweet coconut milk
- 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
- Salt and Pepper
And now we cook….
Big pot, with a top, medium\high heat, add the oil and get it good and hot…but not smoking, add the chicken (salt and pepper the chicken before adding). Sear the chicken on all sides, get a good brown crust going and take the chicken out of the pot. Don’t worry about cooking the chicken all the way through…..we are going to add it back to the soup and simmer, so just let the chicken chill out here on a plate (covered).
Ok, next add the onions, garlic, and ginger and give a quick stir. Alright, now add the chicken stock, coconut milk, lime juice, fish sauce, lemon grass, Sriracha\Sambal Oelek, and sugar. Stir this around and scrape up the bits from the bottom of the pot. Bring to a boil, add the chicken back into the pot, and reduce to a simmer.
The chicken will poach in the soup. After about 5-7 mins pull the chicken out, shred\cut thin, and add back to simmering pot. Simmer another 5 minutes. Take out the lemongrass and discard.
Ok, now I like to add the sliced mushrooms to each bowl and ladle the piping hot soup over the fresh mushrooms. This will cook the mushrooms just enough that they will keep their firm texture. Garnish with diced green onions and cilantro. And you are done.
You shouldn’t have to add much salt as the chicken stock should get you where you need to be. I adjust the hot sauce at the end depending on how you feel. Remember, this recipe depends on the salty\sweet deal….so you may want to add a little sugar to adjust your flavor. I know it seems weird to add sugar in the end like you would add salt….but that is the deal. You want salty\sweet\sour\spicy……play around until you get the right mix.
Thanks so much for reading! Leave a comment if you would like,
~C