Thailand, Part II: Tom Ka Gai

Photo Courtesy of Jamie's Phuket

My posts on Thailand now average one a month. What a sorry blogger I am. But with many apologies and without further ado, here is Chef Tutka's delicious recipe for Tom Ka Gai:

Ingredients

1 shallot, cut into rough wedges

1 stalk coriander, pounded

1 sliced galangal (fresh ginger is an alright substitute)

1 stalk lemongrass, pounded

40 grams oyster mushrooms

60 grams thinly sliced chicken breast, no skin

1 spoonful fish sauce

1 half spoonful sugar

1 half spoonful salt

200 ml. coconut milk

350 ml. chicken stock

4 lime leaves (kaffir lime leaves if you have access)

1 small serrano chile (deseeded, deveined, cut in half and pounded)

1 spoonful lime juice

Preparation:

Isn't it great how all these ingredients are completely fresh and virtually unprocessed? In Thailand, you can buy stock and coconut freshly made. But I digress - I hope you enjoy this recipe - it's very fast and easy to prepare, but the doesn't look or taste that way.

Bring the chicken stock to boil, then add the shallot, coriander, galangal, and lemongrass. Leave it rolling for a couple minutes.

Lower the heat just a bit, and add the mushrooms and chicken. Boil until the chicken is cooked.

Season with the fish sauce, sugar, salt, and chili. I like mine extra spicy, so I just dump the whole thing in, but I suppose you could slice it up and add to taste.

Add the coconut and boil for a minute or so. Add the lime leaves, then take off the heat. Take care not to boil the milk too long or the milk will brown!

Right before you serve, stir in the lime juice. Don't add the juice while the soup is on the heat, you don't want to sour the milk.

I've only made this recipe once since Thailand, but the second time around I used more lemongrass and ginger than the recipe calls for. That extra sour taste with the hotness of the chile and the sweetness of the coconut milk, well, it's just the best. My mouth is watering just thinking of it...

Until next time, Buen Provecho!