It's a shame that it took me so long to make my own Thai food. I have this new found fascination with all things Thai, but I had this idea that it was going to hard, (It wasn't), and that the ingredients were going to be impossible to find, (They weren't).
For me, what decides if I will make a recipe is if I have the ingredients or not. Duh. And if they don't seem too far out of reach. The problem was that Thai food has some ingredients that I was not about to stock in my pantry. (Read: fish sauce and oyster sauce).
Bleh. Am I right? The sound of it....
But had I ever actually tried the stuff? Well, no.
And do I not eat Thai food on a regular basis and quite enjoy its flavor? Um. Yes.
So my challenge to you, is to buy the bottles of stuff which seem scary, and I guarantee once you have them you will find the motivation to cook Thai food. And you will like it. When ingredients like these are in your pantry, you open the doors to so many dishes. And the rest of the ingredient list, albeit long, will be fresh and easy to find. (Please don't hunt me down and quote me if your recipe calls for turtle shell or something ridiculous). Every culture has its quirks.
(Have you seen what is in Western food?)
We have beef fat in Hostess products, crushed red bugs as food colouring, and beetle juice in sprinkles.
But I digress.
This soup is wonderful because it highlights what asian cooks have mastered: balance. Hot, sweet, spicy, sour--all at once. Try it once and I guarantee you will be so inspired you'll be throwin' oyster sauce into stuff left, right, and centre. I am. (See here.)
And not only is it delicious, it is also very chic. (Once you've cleaned up).
Serves 2-3
Ingredients:
12-16 oz. fresh egg noodles (or enough dry for 2-3 portions) or rice noodles
6 c good quality chicken stock
1-2 stocks fresh lemongrass, minced (Use this link if you don't know how to prepare it)
1/4 - 1/2 lb cooked chicken breast or thigh chopped into small pieces (or use leftover roasted chicken)
1/2 c good quality cocoanut milk
3-4 kaffir lime leaves (available fresh or frozen at asian grocery stores)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 thumb size piece of ginger, shredded
1 red chili, sliced (take the seeds out if you don't like it spicy--it will be spicy!)
1 lg carrot sliced
1 Tbsp oyster sauce (I used Golden Dragon brand)
1 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp fish sauce
2-3 c bok choy, chopped
generous handful of fresh cilantro (if you like it)
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice, optional
Directions:
1. Prepare the noodles according to the instructions on the package. Drain and rinse with cold water to keep from sticking. Set aside
2. Bring stock to a boil in a large soup pot. Add the prepared lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, and the chicken. Boil over medium-high heat 3-4 minutes.
3. Reduce to medium heat and add the garlic, ginger, chili, and carrot. Simmer 2-3 more minutes.
4. While soup is simmering, add the oyster sauce and fish sauce, as well as the brown sugar.
5. If your bok choy is the large variety, add only the thick white stalk pieces now (the green leaves take only seconds to cook so reserve those for later). Continue simmering 2-3 minutes.
6. Lastly, add the leafy greens of the bok choy. Stir and simmer 30 seconds.
7. Reduce heat to low. Add the cocoanut milk, stirring well to incorporate.
8. Taste-test for salt, adding more fish sauce if it is not salty enough. If too salty or sweet for your taste, 1 Tbsp lime juice. If too spicy, add more cocoanut milk.
9. To put the soup together, mound a generous amount of the cooked noodles in each bowl. Ladle over the hot soup and top with fresh cilantro.
Enjoy!
