Coconut Curry Chicken Soup
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons of the coconut fat from the top of one of the cans of coconut
- 1 small onion sliced in half pole to pole, then thinly across into half-moon slices
- 2 to 3 tablespoons red Thai curry paste
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 thumb-size piece of galangal or ginger, peeled & cut into 3 chunks
- 2 lemongrass stalks, leafy ends removed, pounded with the side of a knife
- 2 half boneless breasts of chicken (about 20 ounces total) in 1/2 to 3/4″ cubes
- 1 thinly sliced jalapeno (or to taste) or a thinly sliced Thai chile
- 8 ounces mushrooms of choice, sliced. Button, Crimini or Beech all work well.
- 3 cans coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- additional lime, chili slices, and cilantro and/or parsley or green onion sliced thinly for garnish
Instructions
In a soup or stockpot, heat the coconut fat over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, but not colored. Add the curry paste and cook for a minute or two, stirring constantly, then add chicken stock, the galangal or ginger, and the lemongrass stalks.
Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes to infuse the stock with flavor, remove the chunks of ginger and the lemongrass stalks and discard. Add in the chicken, mushrooms, and sliced jalapeno or chile; cook at a low simmer until the chicken is just cooked through, five to six minutes.
Turn down to a bare simmer and add in coconut milk, then sugar, fish sauce, and lime juice. Simmer a minute or two to heat everything through. Taste and adjust flavors, adding a little more of any of the elements to achieve your perfect balance; sugar fo sweet, fish sauce for salty, and lime for sour. If you want more heat, consider stirring in more curry paste.
Serve with additional lime, sliced jalapeno or other chiles, cilantro and/or parsley, and maybe thinly sliced green onion.
Keywords: Asian, Chicken, Chicken Breast, Chicken Stock, chili paste, coconut milk, Fish Sauce, Hot Peppers, jalapenos, Lime, mushrooms, Soup, Thai.