Thai Style Chicken Soup with Basil
These are very hot little firecrackers from the orient. They can be used to add spice to almost any oriental dish. They dry very easily and can be stored and used this way for a long time.
Ingredients:
2 fresh lemongrass stalks, root end trimmed and 1 or 2 outer layers discarded
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 quart rich and flavorful chicken stock
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice, drained, reserving juice
2 ounces tamarind from a pliable block (a 2-inch cube), chopped
3 tablespoon Asian fish sauce
2 (2-inch-long) fresh Thai chiles, thinly sliced
2 fresh or frozen Kaffir lime leaves (or 1 lime cut into quarters squeezed and added whole to the stock)
1 (2-inch) piece peeled ginger, thinly sliced
1 pound skinless boneless chicken breast 1/4 pound snow peas, sliced
1/4 inch thick
1/3 cup packed basil leaves (preferably Thai)
optional – jasmine rice as accompaniment
optional – 1 can of coconut milk
Instructions:
Cut off and discard top of lemongrass, leaving 6-inch stalks, then finely chop. Cook lemongrass, shallots, and garlic in oil in a large heavy pot over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until well browned, 12 to 15 minutes.
Add stock, reserved tomato juice, tamarind, fish sauce, chiles, lime leaves, and ginger and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes.
While soup simmers, freeze chicken breast just until slightly firm, 20 to 30 minutes, then thinly slice crosswise.
Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve into a large saucepan, pressing hard on and then discarding solids. Return to a simmer and stir in chicken, diced tomatoes, snow peas, coconut milk (if using) and basil. Gently simmer just until chicken is cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Season with additional fish sauce and salt. Serve with jasmine rice.
From themarionhousecookbook.com