Tom Kha Gai (Chicken Coconut Soup)

A cold day calls for a soup recipe. Here's one to get you started.

Here's the recipe for the soup, it's adapted from a Sunset Magazine recipe, December 2008.












Tom Kha Gai (Thai Chicken Coconut Soup)

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds of cooked chicken, diced into small cubes
1 diced onion
1 pound of sliced mushrooms
12 slices of fresh ginger (approx. quarter-sized thickness)
2 T. canola oil
1 can of regular coconut milk
1 can of lite coconut milk
1 1/2 quarts of low sodium chicken broth
1 can of bamboo shoots, drained
juice of 2-3 large limes
3 T. fish sauce
2 T. Thai chili paste
1 T. sugar
2 T. chopped lemongrass
fresh basil leaves
fresh cilantro leaves

Saute ginger, onion & mushrooms in a small amt. of canola oil until onions are soft and begin to caramelize. Add mixture to 5 qt. crockpot along with broth, coconut milk, cooked chicken, and bamboo shoots. Stir well until coconut milk dissolves. Add fish sauce, chili paste, sugar, lemongrass, and lime juice. Cook in crockpot on medium heat for 4-6 hours. Add chopped basil and cilantro to taste before serving. Makes about 4 quarts.

You can also cook this in a regular pot on the stove and it takes less time, bring to a boil and then turn down the heat and simmer for at least 30 minutes. It 's better to assemble it early and cook it slowly, it gives the flavors more of a chance to develop.