Description
This Thai Coconut Chicken Soup is based off of traditional recipes for tom kha gai. It is a bowl of creamy comfort flavored with ginger, garlic, Thai chiles, lemongrass, galangal root, and kaffir lime. It’s nourishing, sweet and savory, tangy and salty, and crazy delicious!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced (or ½ of a red onion)
- 2 dried Thai chiles peppers (you can use fresh), left whole
- 2 tablespoons lemongrass paste (this is my favorite; see Notes below)
- 5 fresh or dried kaffir lime leaves (I buy mine online; see Notes below)
- 1 (4-inch) piece of fresh galangal root (I buy mine online; see Notes below), thinly sliced (no need to peel)
- 1 (4-inch) piece of fresh ginger root, thinly sliced (no need to peel)
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed but left mostly whole
- 6 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons coconut or palm sugar (optional but very traditional!)
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- Juice of 3 limes (roughly ⅓ cup), plus more for serving
- 2 (14-oz) cans full-fat coconut milk
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
- 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 1 cup chopped tomato (beefsteak, plum or even halved grape/cherry tomatoes)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Fresh cilantro, for serving
- Chopped scallions, for serving
Instructions
- To a large pot set over medium heat, add the coconut oil. Once hot, add the shallots, chiles, lemongrass paste, kaffir lime leaves, galangal, ginger, garlic, and a generous pinch of salt. These will be the aromatics (or base flavorings) for the broth.
- Sauté the aromatics in the oil until softened and fragrant, about 10 minutes.
- Add the broth, sugar, and fish sauce, partially cover the pot, and bring everything to a simmer. Simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes to allow all the flavors to meld. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
- Carefully pour the broth through a fine mesh strainer into another pot. Discard the aromatics.
- Return the broth to the heat and stir in the lime juice and coconut milk. Return to a simmer.
- Add in the cubed chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the tomatoes and thinly sliced onion – the idea is to sort of poach them in the hot broth. They should still be somewhat raw when serving.
- Adjust the seasoning as necessary. I often add another pinch of sugar, fish sauce, salt, or more lime juice at this point. Keep adjusting until you get the broth where you want it.
- Serve the soup by ladling it into bowls, making sure each serving gets chicken, onion, and tomato. Garnish with fresh cilantro and chopped scallions and additional lime wedges.
Notes
- The traditional version of this soup (tom kha gai) is often made with mushrooms. I prefer to omit them, but if you like mushrooms, feel free to add them in with the onions and tomatoes so that they lightly poach in the hot broth.
- Kaffir lime leaves add an important flavor to this soup. If you cannot find fresh, I recommend buying dry online. I keep them in my pantry for months and they still add wonderful flavor to dishes like this.
- If you cannot find galangal root, you can omit and sub in more ginger instead. I do highly recommend galangal root, if you can find it. It adds the signature flavor to this soup that cannot be replicated. I buy it online and break it into portions and then freeze the portions. It will keep in the freezer for months.
- You can use fresh lemongrass in this recipe as well. Chop it, sauté it, and strain it out with the other aromatics. I cannot always find fresh lemongrass; the paste works in a pinch. The paste is often in the produce section at the grocery store, near the fresh herbs.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: soup