Thai Creamy Chicken Soup Recipe (Tom Kha Gai)

By polloazul

Ingredients

• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2 stalks lemongrass, white ends smashed and sliced into 3 inch lengths
• Handful of kaffir lime leaves, torn (you'll have to use the fresh ones, the dried ones unfortunately don't cut it)
• 2-3 bird's eye chili peppers, sliced (use red chili peppers for less heat)
• 2 inches worth of galangal (this looks like ginger can be found in most Asian grocery stores)
• 1 cup worth of chicken, cubed or cut into bite-sized (I used thighs but feel free to use chicken breast)
• 2-3 shallots, quartered (or use half a red onion)
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 tsp red chili powder (optional)
• 1 tsp fish sauce, or to taste
• 1 tsp light soy sauce, or to taste

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from smokywok.com

Preparation

Step 1

Firstly, bring the coconut milk to the boil. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil again. Add the lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and galangal. Bring to a boil. Add chicken cubes. Add chili powder if using.

Season with the fish sauce and soy sauce. The fish sauce can be rather pungent for newbies but it adds a lot of depth to most Thai dishes. Bring everything to a boil again. Turn heat to low and allow to simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Do a taste test and add more seasoning if required. Throw in the bird's eye chili peppers. Bring to a boil.