Coconut Chicken Soup - Recipe

I don’t really like soups. There I said it. I don’t know what it is but I just can’t get on board with liquid for a meal, it doesn’t feel like I have eaten. What I do like however is broth. Basically, flavoured water with food in it. There is a lovely Thai restaurant in the Leicester Sq area that does a beautiful coconut chicken and mushroom broth and I crave it so much I thought I would try and make my own and do you know what – I think it’s almost as good. 

Ingredients

100g brown rice

1.2l chicken stock or vegetable stock

1 tbsp finely root ginger (or cheat like I did and get it out of a jar)

1 stalk of lemongrass, thinly sliced (same as above)

2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped

250g skinless boneless chicken breast, thinly sliced

175g chestnut mushrooms, sliced

200g cherry tomatoes, halved

The juice of 2 limes

2 tbsp fish sauce (nam pla)

200ml carton coconut cream

a handful of chopped spinach

NOTE: I have included rice in the ingredients for this recipe but when I made it originally I didn’t make it with rice. Instead I just kept it as a brothy soup for a light lunch. Later in the week I cooked rice and added to the soup so we could have this for dinner and it was a bit more filling. It is gorgeous whatever your soup preference.

Method to the madness

(If using cook the rice in boiling salted water for about 10 minutes, until tender, then drain and set aside).

Meanwhile, heat the stock in a large pan, add the lemongrass, galangal or ginger, lime and chillies and simmer for 5 minutes. Next add the chicken and mushrooms and simmer for a further 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, lime juice, fish sauce and coconut cream and simmer for 5 minutes more. Scatter over the spinach and serve (with a little cooked rice spooned in if desired).

Honestly the best soup in the whole world. Try it and you will see!

xxx