Tom Ka Gai Soup

Tom Ka Gai (chicken in coconut milk soup) is my mom's favorite Thai soup ... or maybe even her favorite soup, period. When I visit her in Florida, we often go to her favorite Thai restaurant in New Port Richey and share a bowl of this deliciously creamy soup. She made it once for my Chinese New Years dinner (I always wanted a holiday dinner at my house so I opted for that one since I wouldn't be competing with anyone else) so I thought I'd try my hand at it, too. Surprisingly, even in this diverse DC suburb, I couldn't find galangal (I subbed 'young ginger root') or keffir lime leaves but I just left them out and it still turned out delicious!! I served this as a light dinner with a spring roll but you can also add rice or rice noodles to the bowl and ladle the soup over that.

• 2 14 oz cans coconut milk (I used light from Trader Joe's)
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 12 oz. chicken, cubed
• 2 stalks fresh lemongrass (Use only the bottom part of the lemongrass, up until about 6" from the root, cut into 2" pieces and smash them a bit to release the oils)
• 6 tbsp fish sauce
• 1/3 cup fresh lime juice
• 2 kaffir lime leaves
• 1" piece fresh galangal (Thai ginger) or Chinese ginger, sliced and bruised
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1-2 tbsp Thai red curry paste
• 15 oz can straw mushrooms (I used a variety can with mini corns, bamboo shoots, and straw mushrooms and it was really good)
• Cilantro springs to garnish

In a large stock pot, combine chicken stock, coconut milk, lemongrass, fish sauce, lime juice, kaffir lime leaves, galangal and sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Strain.

Add the red curry paste and whisk well to incorporate it in to the stock. Add the can of mushrooms and cubed chicken, cover and simmer for an additional 10 minutes.

Garnish with cilantro and savor the taste and aroma!