Updated: 12/19/2015

Oleg Lazhechnikov

70

Quite unexpectedly, while devouring another portion of Tom Kha soup, I decided to write about how we prepare it here. Of course, “cooking” is a strong word, because for us it is mostly semi-finished, but there is also cooking there. And most importantly, our recipe is very simple and takes minimal time. True, Tom Kha is not quite Thai, but in the Russian style, but for me it is even better than the traditional one. In general, I won’t bother you any longer, I’ll tell you.

The easiest recipe for Tom Kha soup

Actually, these same Roi Thai bags are already ready-made soup, but they are “empty”, without vegetables, shrimp and meat. Most often, cafes sell Tom Kha Gai (with chicken), but we usually prefer either just vegetable or Tom Kha Kung (with shrimp).

I also want to explain why add coconut milk, if Roi Thai already has it, the soups are ready-made. The fact is that the very first Tom Kha that I tried left an indelible impression and was remembered as the ideal soup. So, there was quite a lot of coconut milk in it, so in some cafes Tom Kha seems diluted to me, let alone Roi Thai. Try it, it turns out to be a much richer taste.

This time there were no large bags at Tops Market and I bought small ones of 250 ml. Further, everything is even simpler. We cut the vegetables and cook them. What vegetables? Yes, any: carrots, onions, cauliflower, zucchini, some kind of greens, potatoes. Essentially everything that is cooked for ordinary Russian vegetable soup and that is in the refrigerator. You can stock up onions and carrots, but we are usually lazy, there’s already enough taste.

Pour the contents of all 4 packets into the pan (3 Roi Thai + 1 coconut milk), add the previously cooked vegetables (here, as you prefer, thicker or thinner), bring to a boil and that’s it! Tom Kha soup is ready! You can also add boiled chicken or shrimp here. By the way, shrimp can be cooked right there; they just need to boil for 1-2 minutes.

Traditionally, all Thai soups are eaten with rice. We do this too. We’ve never had a particular love for it, but either the rice in Thailand is different or something else, but now I want it all the time. In general, rice is needed to combat the spiciness; it really helps.

Why do I add pepper? Because in my opinion, Roi Thai, diluted with vegetables and coconut milk, is not spicy at all, especially if eaten with rice. But this is all for everyone.

750 ml Roi Thai + 250 ml coconut milk + vegetables = enough for 3-4 normal servings. It turns out cheaper than in a cafe and much more satisfying, because in Thai soups there is usually nothing to eat except “water” and shrimp/meat; only a plate of boiled rice in addition saves you.

P.S. Yes, I almost forgot, this recipe is only available on a budget in Thailand. In Russia, Roi Thai bags are more expensive. On the other hand, there is no choice; in Thai cafes in Moscow the prices are even higher.

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It’s stupid to go to a master class and then not repeat anything at home. This time. And two - well, I shouldn’t have carried these damn bunches of lemongrass, lime and galangal through 5 countries, for goodness sake, or what?! Of course, all the efforts simply had to result in a bowl of homemade soup.

I decided to cook Tom Kha soup, it is similar to Tom Yum, but it is cooked with coconut milk and turns out more satisfying, creamy, and in general, we liked it better.

So, Tom Kha Kung is a spicy Thai soup made with coconut milk and shrimp.

The composition is as follows:

- large unpeeled shrimps 8 pieces

- 1 large tomato

- 7-8 medium-sized champignons

- 2 lemongrass sprouts

- 7-8 kaffir lime leaves

- galangal root, approximately 4-5 cm

- 2 limes

- 1 chili pepper

- a few green onions

- 500 ml coconut milk

- 3 tbsp fish sauce

- 1 teaspoon chili paste

- cilantro for decoration

I bought shrimp at Metro. Yes, very, very expensive. Almost like Miratorgov steaks :) I was looking for unpeeled ones, with heads and in the shell, only large ones were available, but they are not much more expensive than medium-sized ones. In general, I’m broke, I can do it once.

I started with shrimp. I tore off their heads and removed their shells (remember, 5 plates down, leaving the tail):

I made broth from the heads and shells. I washed them, filled them with water, 700 ml, brought to a boil and boiled over medium heat for 20 minutes. Then I strained, I got about half a liter of rich broth:

Those. In general there will be a liter of liquid, because cooking this soup for future use is completely pointless.

I cut the shrimp bodies lengthwise along the back, not all the way through, and removed the intestines, they are long and black, you can’t go wrong. I washed it. From such 8 butterflies, beauty!

Now the base of the soup: lemongrass, galangal root and kaffir lime leaves. I brought all this from Tai, but you can also buy it here, in ready-made sets for Tom Yam. True, the price... What I brought cost a penny, just a penny :(

Lemongrass. The soup gives a very pleasant lemon-ginger aroma. In general, they don’t eat it, but if you chop it up very much, you can eat it, it will only be beneficial. I cut it off at both ends so that there were pieces 10-12 cm long. I cut one lengthwise, and crumbled the second diagonally very thinly:

Galangal root, they don’t eat it either, it’s a spice, very similar to ginger, but it tastes more delicate, and it also has a taste of something pine, it seemed to me. I cut them crosswise into slices, as thin as possible, so they will give more of their flavor to the soup:

I also used kaffir lime leaves for the broth. Also a spice, tart and sour, very tasty! I brought a lot and dried most of the leaves, so in the process our whole apartment smelled fragrant, a very pleasant aroma. They are easy to use - just bend them in half along the stem and pull it out.

And a chili pepper. I decided not to be a hero and took out the seeds and cut the pod thinly diagonally. Complete set for broth:

Let's move on to the actual filling of the soup. The main ingredients are usually shrimp (that’s what I have) or chicken. There may also be a selection of seafood, beef, pork, fish or just vegetables. Depending on this, another word is added at the end of the name.

For example,

Tom Yam Kung (Gong) - with shrimp

Tom Yam Kai (Gai) - with chicken

Tom Yum Pla - with fish

Tom Yam Thale - with seafood

Tom Yum Moo - with pork (although “moo” should be with beef :)))

Tom Yam Nyah - with beef

And if everything is the same, but not with broth, but with coconut milk, then Tom Kha. Yyyy!

And the non-main ingredients are onions, mushrooms and tomatoes. Variations are possible. Here I deviated from the classics and removed the onions. Somehow we don’t really eat it in boiled form, although in Thailand I ate it too, because although it was boiled, it was quite a bit, slightly crunchy. So it’s possible, it’s not for everyone.

Mushrooms ideally need straw ones. I didn’t even look for them, I know that we don’t have them. As a substitute, you can use champignons, oyster mushrooms or shiitake mushrooms. I took champignons, I’ll explain why. IMHO, they are most similar to straw ones, both in taste and, most importantly, in shape - round, dense. Those. When eating, you get almost the same sensations, which I would not achieve from plate oyster mushrooms or shiitake. I think so!

They need to be cut, small ones into halves, large ones into quarters. A piece - for one bite:

I cut a large tomato into quarters and crosswise again. I already wrote in the topic about the master class, and I’ll repeat it again: you need unripe red-green hard fruits. There at the market I was already reaching for the ripe red ones, but they quickly slapped my hands and explained that I needed sour ones! Solid! And period.

This tomato, by the way, was also not that good; it quickly spread in the soup. We have to wait for summer, there will be nowhere to put these unripe ones :)

Place the broth on the stove, add lemongrass, lime leaves, galangal and chili. Bring to a boil and cook over low heat for 5-7 minutes:

At the same time, add a spoonful of chili paste as a spicy component. I've had this jar for a long time, consumption is slow. Ingredients: chopped chili pepper, vegetable oil, garlic, chopped dried shrimp, soy sauce, salt, sugar. I use it a lot, it’s a great product, I advise everyone to buy something similar. An option is regular chili pepper, you can get by with it. Or spicy vegetable oil. Either Tom Yam or Tom Kha paste.

Boil the broth, add coconut milk. I think there are no problems here, now it is sold in many places. Bring to a light boil:

Throw in the mushrooms and tomatoes, cook for 3-4 minutes:

Then shrimp:

Here I also retreated from the master class, where they seemed too overcooked to me. Why should they? I gave it exactly a minute to get the temperature up.

Now let's even out the taste. Fish sauce, a couple of tablespoons, a good pinch of sugar (I took brown, ideally you need palm). Juice of two limes (I got by with one and half):

I stirred and almost immediately turned off the heat. Lastly, green onions and cilantro. Covered it with a lid.

A couple of minutes is enough to brew. And you can pour it.

Thais eat this soup with rice. But for me it turned out normal, so rich, it’s worth a spoonful :) So we just ate it the Russian way, with some bread! :) I’m lying, we managed like this, the bread didn’t bring us something. It turned out very tasty:

It turned out quite well for the first time. The balance of flavors is maintained: spicy-sour-sweet-salty taste, with a pleasant spicy aftertaste. Fragrant, with a creamy broth, all the toppings, as they say, are in good shape, the mushrooms, tomatoes, and the most tender shrimp!

I apologize for the overly detailed description, this is my jamb that I am struggling with, but to no avail. And I suggest you try it again, it’s delicious! Well, I think everyone should try this at least once in their life. There will definitely be fans. Bon appetit everyone and thank you for your attention :)

Tom Kha is one of the most famous Thai coconut milk soups, in which sour, salty, spicy and milky flavors are intertwined. The dish belongs to the category of the popular spicy Tom Yum soup and differs from it in the composition of chicken breasts instead of shrimp. Having eaten a rich and satisfying soup at first glance, it will not leave a feeling of heaviness in the stomach, and the aftertaste of sour lime and hot chili will remind you of a delicious meal for a long time.

Features of Tom Kha soup recipe

The dish gets its name from galangan - Thai ginger. "Tom" means "boil", which can be literally translated as boiled ginger. For spiciness, without which it is impossible to imagine the dish, cooks use chili pepper, and for a spicy aroma and harsh taste - cilantro.

Relatively recently, it has become popular in cooking to add oyster mushrooms to soup. Mushrooms are a healthy product that contains the entire balanced set of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, mineral salts and vitamins. With the unique property of having no calories at all, they are able to satiate and completely satisfy the feeling of hunger. Thanks to this, Tom Kha has become a staple in the diet of people who adhere to a healthy diet, are on a diet and want to lose weight.

We have delivery of Tom Kha soup to Butovo.

Due to the fact that oyster mushrooms replicate meat in their benefits and composition (contain the same groups of vitamins PP, B, D2, C), Tom Kha is prepared in chicken broth with the addition of boiled fillet. Lemongrass, ginger, sugar are also simmered in the broth over low heat, and coconut milk is poured in 5 minutes before cooking. To emphasize the taste, chopped herbs and fresh cilantro are added to the portion, and lime juice is squeezed out.

How to eat Tom Kha soup

Those who wish to demonstrate true Thai restaurant etiquette by ordering Tom Kha soup must adhere to the basic rules.

1. Soup is considered an addition to the main dish - rice, so Tom Kha is consumed at the same time as it. To do this, you can soak the rice in a bowl with broth or transfer some of the broth to a plate with rice.
2. In order to eat the liquid (broth), you need to use a Thai spoon.
3. The fillet pieces are usually small in size, so there is no need to cut them before putting them in your mouth. In addition, Thais do not welcome a knife as a cutlery, so in most cases they do not serve the table with it.
4. The “hard” and “thick” components of the soup are eaten with chopsticks.
5. Roots, herbs and spices are left in the bowl and are not eaten, despite the fact that they are served with the soup.

Traditionally, Thais consume thin, clear soups at the same time as their main dishes, so the usual habit of eating soup first would be incorrect. Sometimes Tom Kha is used as a sauce. This usually happens when a very spicy soup is ordered, then it is poured over rice or noodles.

I haven’t shared delicious recipes with you for a long time, it’s all because of the vacation :). Actually, during it I became inspired by Thai cuisine and would like to present to your attention one of the most popular dishes in Thailand - Tom Kha coconut milk soup.

As for me, Tom Kha is even more than that. Or rather, it’s not at all the soup that we imagine most often when talking about soups in our latitudes.

Tom Kha has a unique sweetish-spicy taste, filled with the aromas of herbs: lemongrass, cilantro, lime leaves. Also, ginger root - an essential ingredient - adds piquancy and a bright flavor. With the amount of chili pepper (or lack thereof) you can control the heat as well as how warming your Tom Kha will be.

In short, there is room for your imagination here too. In addition, you can cook it with chicken, shrimp, other seafood, or even make it vegetarian.

Don’t be confused by the names of rare herbs: now you can increasingly find them in markets or in special departments of supermarkets (where they are packaged and sold in sets with the appropriate names). Also, spice sets for Tom Kha and other Thai soups can be ordered online.

It should be noted that there are many variations in the preparation of this soup. What can I say, even in every Thai restaurant they prepare it differently. Only the main ingredients remain unchanged.

My version of Tom Kha soup is very easy to prepare. And if you love its ingredients individually, I assure you that this taste will captivate you! The dish is truly exotic (and, by the way, very satisfying:) with which you can surprise your loved ones and serve it to the festive table.

Tom Kha: step-by-step recipe

Ingredients (for 2-3 servings):

• chicken broth – 300 ml;
• coconut milk – 200-250 ml;
• lemongrass – ½ stem (or 3-4 pinches dried);
• fresh ginger – 1 small root;
• cilantro – 1 bunch;
• lime juice – 2 tbsp;
• champignons (fresh or canned) – 100 g;
• chicken breast or seafood – 200-250 g;
• tomato – 2 pcs. small (or 1 large);
• shallots - a couple of stems;
• onion – 1 piece;
• lime leaves (optional) – 2-3 pcs;
• chili pepper (optional) – 1 pc. or to your taste;
• salt – ½ tsp.

Preparation:

The lemongrass stem needs to be beaten a little to release the juice and cut into 1-2 cm pieces.

Bring the chicken broth to a boil, add sliced ​​ginger, lemongrass and lime leaves (if using), coarsely chopped onion and tomato, simmer for 5-7 minutes over low heat.

Add coconut milk, finely chopped chili pepper (optional). Then – mushrooms (cut into halves or quarters), pieces of chicken or seafood and cook until tender (if with chicken, then 7-10 minutes; seafood will be cooked in a couple of minutes). Add some salt.

Remove from heat and only then add cilantro, shallots and lime juice.

Thai Tom Kha soup is ready - bon appetit!

P.S. If you are making Tom Kha for the first time

1. Be sure to add the lime juice at the very end, just before serving. Boiling softens its taste (and kills all the beneficial substances), but we need a fresh aroma.
2. When pouring into plates (or large bowls, as in Thailand), do not be afraid of the abundance of greens, stems and ginger - you should not ignore them. In the plate they will continue to give off their aroma, but there is no need to eat them (the stems and roots, as well as coarsely chopped onions, can be left at the bottom).
3. Tom Kha can be served with rice Jasmine(in a separate bowl). Ideally, steamed.

Thailand is an amazing country, whose cuisine is gaining more and more popularity among our compatriots every year. And if the words Tom Yam or Tom Kha Kai do not surprise you, then you will like the recipe for Tom Kha Kung soup doubly!

If you have just decided to get acquainted with the national cuisine of Thailand, then we can assure you that your acquaintance will definitely leave a lot of positive impressions!

It is worth noting that Thai cuisine itself may seem surprisingly strange at first glance, but if you have ever tried Thai soups, then most likely you will not be able to forget this unique taste!

Tom Kha Kung - like the vast majority of Thai dishes, is a spicy soup, so be prepared in advance for a spicy taste. But you shouldn’t think that Tom Kha Kung is a “fiery-spicy” soup; in fact, its taste is quite difficult to describe and it’s much easier to try this dish yourself.

To prepare Tom Kha Kung soup, we need the following ingredients - shrimp, chicken broth, basil, hot green pepper, coconut milk, lemon, lemongrass, garlic and ginger. Don't be surprised that some of the ingredients are unfamiliar, but they are all sold in grocery stores these days, usually in special Thai soup kits.

Tom Kha Kung recipe

by admin Published: May 5, 2014

• Exit: 4 persons
• Preparation: 10 minutes
• Cooking: 15 minutes
• Total: 25 minutes

Thailand is an amazing country, whose cuisine is gaining more and more every year...

Ingredients

• 1/4 pack
• 6 pcs.
• 2 pcs.
• 1 PC. 6 cloves
• 1 tbsp.
• 5 tbsp.
• 1 pack
• 16 pcs.
• 8 pcs.
• 1 PC.
• 2 tbsp.
• 1 tbsp.

Instructions

1. Wash all the ingredients thoroughly and start cutting the lemongrass into large rings.
2. Hot green pepper can be immediately cut into rings, or you can divide it into two halves and remove the seeds, which are the hottest part of the pepper.
   
   
3. Grate the ginger on a fine grater and chop the garlic as finely as possible.
   
   
4. In a saucepan, melt 1/4 of the butter and begin sautéing the lemongrass and chopped green peppers.
   
   
5. Fry the ingredients for about 1 minute so that they reveal their aroma, then add ginger and garlic to the pan and continue to fry for about 1-2 minutes. It is very important not to “cook” all the ingredients, as they only need to reveal their flavor.
   
   
6. Add the chicken broth to the pan and bring the Tom Kha Kung soup base to a light simmer.
   
   
7. After this, add coconut milk from one can to the almost finished Tom Kha Kung soup, mix all the ingredients and leave the almost ready soup to heat up. Be careful not to bring the broth to a high boil after you've added the coconut milk, as it may curdle.
   
   
8. Add the juice of half a lemon and basil leaves to the soup. You can also add a couple of tablespoons of fish sauce, but if it is missing, you can replace it with the same two tablespoons of soy sauce.
   
   
9. Add peeled shrimp to the almost finished Tom Kha Kung soup and continue heating the broth until the shrimp are ready. We have already mentioned that coconut milk can curdle when boiled, so we recommend that you boil the shrimp in advance and add them to Tom Kha Kung already prepared.
   
   
10. The taste of Tom Kha Kung soup is difficult to describe in words, but it should be at the same time sweet, spicy, salty and contain a slight sourness. Therefore, you can bring the Tom Kha Kung soup to the perfect taste by adding 1 tablespoon of cane sugar, a little more soy sauce or lemon (lime) juice.
    
    
11. Tom Kha Kung soup is completely ready and you can pour it into bowls, adding to each serving a little shrimp and other ingredients that contributed to its taste. Don't forget that lemongrass is not eaten and is simply left in the bowl or removed from the Tom Kha Kung soup in advance.
    
    
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