One of the beautiful things about cooking is its ability to take you places. Like this Coconut Lemongrass Chicken Soup. In this case, I’ve been a little homesick. We know how comforting a bowl of warm soup on a chilly day can be, however, this recipe takes me back home to Charlotte, NC.
There was this one Thai restaurant we’d frequent. My family celebrated birthdays there. I had the college lunch special with one of my best friends there all the time. In addition, it is a spot I’d take anyone visiting town to. The thing I always ordered was the Tom Kha Gai soup. Creamy coconut broth, flavored with chilies, lemongrass, lime leaves, and these delicious straw mushrooms with velvety chicken. It is so simple and perfect. Above all, it is easy to make! 😋 Here’s my ode to that deliciously nurturing soup. Hope you like the recipe (on the blog) 🙌🏾 What’s your favorite comfort food?
If you like this recipe, you might also like my: Roasted Chicken Noodle Soup, Roasted White Pumpkin Sage Soup, or Rasam (a South Indian soup). If you end up making my Coconut Lemongrass Chicken Soup, tag me @thefamiliarkitchen on instagram. I’d LOVE to see how it turns out for you and answer any questions you might have!
Coconut Lemongrass Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- Coconut Oil, 1 tbsp
- Shallots, 5-6, medium sized, thinly sliced
- Garlic, 8-10 cloves, minced
- Ginger, 2", thinly slice/shaved
- Green Chili Peppers, 2-3, diced
- Lemongrass, 2 sticks (about 4" long), crushed
- Green Cardamom, 8-10 pods
- Kaffir Lime Leaves, 3-4 or Lime Zest, 1 tbsp
- Thai Red Curry Paste, 2 tbsp Aroy-D, Thai Kitchen, Thai Taste, Maesri brands
- Chicken Stock, 3 1/2 cups Pacific Foods is Whole30 approved
- Thick Coconut Milk, 4 cups
- Chicken Breast, 2, thinly sliced
- White Mushrooms, 1 cup, thinly sliced Straw Mushrooms work well, too
- Brown Sugar, 2 tbsp Use Coconut Aminos, 3 tbsp to make it Whole30 approved
- Fish Sauce, 3-4 tbsp Red Boat brand is Whole30 approved
- Lime Juice, juice of 1 lime
- Salt, 2-3 tsp
- Sweet Red Pepper, 2, thinly sliced into rounds
- Scallions, 1/3 cup, thinly diced
- Cilantro, 1/3 cup, stems removed
Instructions
Prep the chicken.
- Thinly slice the chicken breast then season it with about 1-2 tsp of salt and a few cracks of pepper. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
Make the base.
- In a heavy bottom pot (dutch oven) on medium high heat, add the coconut oil. Once he oil is melted, reduce the heat to medium and add the shallots, garlic, ginger, green chilies, lemongrass, green cardamom, kaffir lime leaves, and red curry paste. *Be sure to smash the lemongrass sticks and green cardamom to release the flavorsSaute the ingredients until the shallots soften. Be careful not to burn the ingedients. Reduce heat to medium low if needed.
Form the broth.
- Once the shallots soften, add the chicken stock, coconut milk, chicken breast, and mushrooms. We are NOT trying to boil this, just keep it at a medium to medium low heat for about 15 minutes. If you boil this, the coconut milk with curdle.
Simmer and season.
- Once the chicken is cooked all the way through, add the remaining ingredients. Let simmer for 1 minute. Garnish with more cilantro leaves and scallions. Enjoy!
Guys, Thanks For sharing this Great Recipe. My Family Loved it. I am definitely sharing this recipe and this website with my friend. Hope they also love it. Thank you again for sharing such a great recipe.
Best Thai coconut soup I’ve ever had. Great recipe. I am eating it tonight and we’ll definitely make again
Best Thai coconut soup I’ve ever had. Great recipe. I am eating it tonight and we’ll definitely make again. I did not have Lime Leaf or zest so I used ground sumac. It’s a good substitute
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe! I’ll have to try sumac when I make it next 🙂
I’m excited to try this recipe since I have all the ingredients (and too many lemon grass stalks on hand) but I couldn’t find anywhere what the serving was for this recipe. It also says 5-6 shallots. I have shallots that are about 3” in length (about 2 inches in diameter; 5-6 of those seem quite a lot?).
I’m trying to make a serving for 4 people. Please advise. Thank you!
Hi there! This makes roughly 8 cups of soup so serves about 6-8 people depending on how big the soup bowls are 🙂
For the shallots, I would suggest using 3-4 large shallots or 5-6 medium sized. Hope this helps!
Thanks For Sharing this Amazing Recipe. My Family Loved It. I will be sharing this Recipe with my Friends. Hope They will like it.