TOMKHA SOUP

Tom Kha Soup 

This recipe makes hearty serving for a family of 4.

We don’t use onion and garlic in our foods. So this is my recipe, and it comes out pretty close to restaurants style.

Making Vegetable stock

Making vegetable stock is very easy you can make it from vegetable peals, left over stems, root. Boil what you have in water, add some salt and a tablespoon of oil. I typically use carrots, potatoes, and celery to make my stock. You can also buy store-bought stock. You will need 2 1/2 cups of vegetable stock.

Ingredients 

2.5 cups vegetable stock

2 cans coconut milk - you can use 1 can if you don’t like it very creamy, but add another 1 cups of stock

1 cup baby carrots 

1 cup baby corn

1 cup clean diced celery

1 cup broccoli florets cleaned

2 tomatoes cut into fours

8 slices dry galangal

6-7 dry kafir lime leaves 

- you can use fresh ones if you have access to them. I don’t get fresh kafir easily.

2 stems fresh lemon grass or 1 tbsp of lemon grass paste

1 tsp - dry chili flakes 

1 tsp sugar (optional)

1/2 cup chopped cilantro 

Juice from 1/2 lime

1/2 tsp lime zest

Salt to taste

Procedure 

In a heavy bottom pan bring the vegetable stock ,coconut milk, galangal root, the lemon grass, and kafir lime leaves. If you are using fresh leaves then chiffonade them. If using dry crumble them. Bring it to a slow boil on simmer.  

In another large pan, add all the vegetables except tomatoes, salt them lightly, and let steam for 4 mins with lid closed. Tomatoes cook too fast so we have too lightly cook them just before serving. 

Add the steamed veggies to the coconut milk. Add dry chilies flakes, salt, lemon juice, lemon zest and boil for 3 mins. 

Lightly sauté the tomatoes in a pan. No oil needed. It take about 90 seconds on high heat for the tomato to  start leaving its skin. Turn off the flame. 

Add cilantro, tomatoes and serve hot !!! Don’t serve the lemon grass or galangal. 

If storing in refrigerator, take the lemon grass and galangal out and store.  They deep into the soup too much and make the soup very medicine like.