Thai-Style Chicken and Mushroom Soup (Tom kha kai)

Tom kha kai has become one of my favorite Thai soups. Lemongrass, lime and coconut milk are key flavors. I have made this several times– always with great results. What I like about this version is that you don’t need to find an exotic market to find the ingredients.This recipe is a simple, but effective, recreation of this Thai soup.

Are you ready?

You need 3 stalks of lemongrass. If you’ve never worked with this, it’s very easy to find in a grocery store nowadays.  It looks like scallions on steroids– only they can be a challenge to cut. You need a really sharp knife, or you might want to grab an ax (well, not really). I, once bought, lemongrass in a tube (located in the produce section).  It’s just not the same as real lemongrass. Remove the outside leaves, wash them and then…

…cut them into chunks, with a very sharp and sturdy knife.. I also chopped three shallots. Shallots are always in my fridge. I love them, because they are milder than red onion so they don’t overpower my sauces, or salad dressings. If you haven’t used shallots, much, try them. You’ll always want them on hand.

The rest of the ingredients are easy to find– fresh cilantro, coconut milk (I use the Lite version), chicken broth, red curry paste and fish sauce.  Some of you might be wrinkling your nose at the thought of fish sauce. I did, too.  However, give it a chance. Don’t sniff it! It’ll scare you. Honestly, the sauce is important and you cannot taste any fish. I wouldn’t lie to you!

You want to slice boneless, skinless chicken breasts into really thin strips. The trick is to freeze the chicken for about 15 minutes– this makes slicing it, on the bias (against the grain), so much easier. Don’t cut chunks! You want it nice and thin…you’ll see why in a few more steps.

Begin by tenderizing the lemongrass and shallots in a little vegetable oil. Season with 1 Tbsp of fish sauce and the chopped cilantro.

Once the flavors have infused, strain the soup and discard the veggies.

Add one more can of coconut milk, 1 Tablespoon of sugar and bring to a simmer. Add the sliced mushrooms and cook for 2-3 minutes. Now, add the thinly sliced chicken and cook until the pink is gone– stirring often– 2-3 minutes.  This is why you don’t want big chunks of chicken!

Remove the chicken from the heat (as in turn off the stove!) and add 3 Tablespoons of fresh squeezed lime juice, the red curry paste.  and 2 Tablespoons of fish sauce.  You can serve the soup as an appetizer..

… to ladle soup over the rice, for a heartier meal. This soup comes really close to the authentic Tom kha kai soup from my favorite restaurant.  We love it! It’s very simple to make, and the red curry paste gives a nice little kick to the soup.

TASTING NOTES:  What a flavorful soup!  If you love coconut, lime and lemongrass– this is the soup for you! Yes, you can easily substitute shrimp instead of chicken.  I would even think you could use tofu as well, though I’m not sure if a vegetable stock would taste as authentic.  This is a pretty economical dish to make. The Thai ingredients aren’t very costly and they last me for a while.

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5 from 1 vote

Tom Kha Kai Soup – Thai Style Coconut Soup

Tom kha kai has become one of my favorite Thai soups. Lemongrass, lime and coconut milk are key flavors. This recipe is adapted to be simplified way to replicate this soup, without having to shop for exotic ingredients. We've made this several times and absolutely love it!

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Soup

Cuisine: Thai

Keyword: Thai Coconut Soup, Tom kha kai soup

Servings: 4

Calories: 237kcal

Author: Debby – www.AFeastfortheEyes.net

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 3 stalks lemongrass tough outer leaves removed, bottom 5 inches halved lengthwise and sliced thin crosswise
• 3 large shallots chopped
• 8 sprigs f resh cilantro leaves coarsely chopped
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce divided
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 14-ounce cans coconut milk well-shaken, divided
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 pound white mushrooms cleaned, stems trimmed, cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts halved lengthwise and sliced on bias into 1/8 inch thick pieces
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 2 serrano chiles thinly sliced (Optional)
• 2 scallions thinly sliced on bias
• 1 lime cut into wedges

Instructions

• Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat until just shimmering.
• Add lemongrass, shallots, cilantro and 1 tablespoon fish sauce. Cook, stirring frequently, until just softened, 2 to 5 minutes (vegetables should not brown).
• Stir in chicken broth and 1 can coconut milk. Bring to simmer over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until flavors have blended, 10 minutes.
• Pour broth through fine mesh strainer and discard solids. Rinse saucepan and return broth mixture to pan.
• Return pan to medium-high heat. Stir remaining can coconut milk and sugar into broth mixture and bring to simmer.
• Reduce heat to medium, add mushrooms and cook until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add chicken and cook, stirring constantly, until no longer pink, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove soup from heat.
• Combine lime juice, curry paste and remaining 2 tablespoons fish sauce in small bowl. Stir into soup.
• Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with cilantro, chiles, and scallions. Serve immediately with lime wedges.
• Optional: Pour soup over cooked rice for extra "heft" as a main meal

Notes

Recipe source: Cook’s Illustrated Magazine 2007

Nutrition

Calories: 237kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 1271mg | Potassium: 1008mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 786IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 41mg | Iron: 2mg

Tried this recipe?Mention @afeastfortheeyes or tag #afeastfortheeyesblog!

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