My kids love Thai food. I usually play it pretty safe and order some type of chicken and cashew over rice dish but my children have a little more sophisticated taste than I do. Tessa introduced me to one of her favorite Thai soups – a chicken coconut soup. It was delicious! I decided to try and recreate something similar at home. I found a recipe for a Thai Coconut Chicken Soup in America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook that I adapted and Jim and I both loved the results.
As I was eating dinner I texted Tessa to tell her that I had just made a soup I thought she was going to love! I can’t wait for her to try it and see what she thinks.
This soup is made with coconut milk which gives it amazing flavor but it also makes it so my dairy free daughter Cali can enjoy it too! Be sure and buy coconut milk NOT coconut cream. Coconut milk is not heavy.
The soup calls for curry paste. I used green curry paste and found it in the Asian aisle at the grocery store. The soup has amazing flavor thanks to the curry paste, coconut milk, lime juice and some cilantro.
I added in carrots but the original recipe called for mushrooms but I’m not a big mushroom fan.
Tessa always orders a side of sticky rice when she has her favorite soup at the Thai restaurant so I decided to add it to this soup and I’m glad I did. Making sticky rice is easy. Use a short or medium grain white rice. Rinse the rice in a strainer. I cooked mine in a rice cooker but it could be done on the stove top too. Put the rice into the water (2 cups rice to 3 cups water) in the pan or rice cooker and allow it to sit for 30 minutes before beginning to cook. You end up with perfect sticky rice!
If you are looking for a delicious new soup to try with some fun new flavors Thai Coconut Chicken Soup is it. Even if you think you don’t like coconut, give it a try! The flavor is lovely and subtle.
For some other delicious soups try these:
Italian Wedding Soup – Clam Chowder – Chicken Parmesan Soup
Thai Coconut Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
- 5 Tbsp Thai green curry paste
- 6 C chicken broth
- 3 Tbsp soy sauce or fish sauce for gluten free version
- 1 Tbsp light brown sugar
- 2 14 oz. cans coconut milk
- 2 skinless boneless chicken breasts, cooked and thinly sliced into 1 inch strips
- 3 carrots peeled and sliced
- 1/2 lb. white mushrooms trimmed and sliced thin
- 3 Tbsp fresh lime juice
- salt to taste
- 1/3 C chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- 2 C short or medium grain white rice
Instructions
- Heat oil in pan.
- Stir in ginger and curry paste and cook for 1 minute
- Add in 1/2 C of chicken broth and stir until the curry paste has dissolved
- Add in remaining broth, soy sauce and sugar.
- Add in carrots and simmer until fork tender.
- Add in coconut milk, chicken and mushrooms.
- Simmer about 5 minutes.
- Add in lime juice, season with salt and add in cilantro before serving.
Sticky Rice
- Rinse rice in a strainer.
- Place in pan or rice cooker in 3 C of water.
- Allow to sit for 30 minutes
- In a pan, bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer. Cook until rice is done (will be sticky)
- Or cook in rice cooker.
Enjoy!
Leigh Anne
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Merry Christmas! Just made the soup today, WOW!!! It turned out wonderful,
so authentic tasting. We used Jasmine rice & followed your instructions.
This recipe is a keeper, I will make it again (and again!)
Thank you Leigh Anne, I’m impressed with your website & your recipes,
I can’t wait to try them all out!
Randee, I am so glad you loved it. I just made it again last week for a luncheon and it was a big hit. Thanks for letting me know!
Yum! I can’t wait to try it. Can light coconut milk be substituted for regular or should I stick with the regular coconut milk? Thanks!
Light would probably be fine – enjoy!
Any suggestions for how to make this soup Thai-hot or spicy?
You could use a hotter curry paste.
Leigh Anne, I made this soup tonight, and it is Amazing! My husband and I love Thai food, and we felt like we were eating at our favorite restaurant! Thanks for all the fabulous recipes you put here on your blog. I am a regular visitor! 🙂
So glad you and your husband loved it! It’s become a favorite at our house.
Oh this sounds so good! It reminds me of something me and my sister make! Yummy goodness!
Your soup looks so good and sounds so flavorful!
This looks so good! I am going to make it this next week!! Thanks so much Leigh Anne!
Hope you enjoy it as much as we did Amy!
This was dinner tonight and my family loved it. My 15-year-old said it is now her favorite soup (and I make lots of soups). My 18-year-old son asked me to write it up so he can add it to his file of recipes. It was so delicious. Thanks so much!
Julie, thanks so much for your comment! I love that it is now and family favorite and even more that your 18 year old son wants the recipe!!!
I made this last night and it was so delicious – thank you very much for posting the recipe! It’s a definite winner!
I love hearing that!
I had some of this yummy soup at a restaurant on Friday night and said I should find a recipe for it. Done! Thanks!
Also, my brother make a TON of Thai food and has all of the family a bit obsessed with it. FYI if you want to cook much Thai it is definitely worth investing in some Fish Sauce. Stinks a lot, but tastes fabulous and give a real authentic Thai taste to everything it touches.
Another tidbit is that Thai sticky rice is a bit sweet and if you can find it in an asian market it is worth purchasing for the unique sweet/sticky combo that it is. It is not Japanese sticky rice at all. The Thai’s eat it with their fingers and a savory stir fry. We generally eat it with mango’s for dessert. It is yummy with savory – we should all try!
Vicki – Thanks for the tips. I actually usually have fish sauce on hand but was all out so I grabbed the soy sauce. Will have to head to the local Asian market and look for sweet rice! Eating it with mango sounds wonderful!!
This flavor combination looks amazing! Will have to try this one–thanks for sharing!
Thanks Lauren. It really was delicious and I keep thinking about it since I made so I know it’s a keeper. Need to make it again soon!
Sounds yummy. Do you have any ideas for Thai Coconut Sausages? I recently purchased some by mistake and don’t know what to do with them!
Looks do delicious! I can’t wait to try it. I am GF, so I will be using coconut aminos instead of soy sauce. YUM! LOVE YOU BLOG!! Blessings for a GREAT DAY!
Barb, The original recipe used Fish Sauce instead of soy sauce so you could also substitute that.
Enjoy!