Thai Soup

My hairdresser was telling me about Tom Kha Gai soup she makes and it got me thinking that it doesn't have to be difficult or require a stop at uwajimaya.

I make my own chicken broth- it is cheap and pretty quick when using a pressure cooker.  And it tastes better!


Method:
for 2-4 people (depending on portion size and desired  leftover)

Boil (or pressure cook) 4 C chicken broth with 2 inch of ginger, cut into big chunks and 2 stalks lemongrass (pounded with meat tenderizer).

Boil until fragrant, or if pressure cooking, 3-4 minutes is fine (then bring down pressure and open). Strain out and discard ginger and lemongrass.

Add to the pot, put on low heat with lid and warm it up without boiling:
coconut milk (lite or regular, or use coconut cream) to taste
1/2 red onion, sliced into wedges
1/2 - 1 C cooked chicken shredded into bite size pieces
0.5 - 1 tsp fish sauce
0.5 - 1 tsp red pepper flakes
0.5 TB sugar to taste (balances out the flavor)

2 ears corn off the cob (or 1 C frozen)
5 cremini or button mushrooms, thinly sliced

Cook on low without boiling until warmed through.

Just before serving, stir in chopped basil and cilantro. Serve, optional with rice.

Options:

• Instead of using cooked leftover chicken, my hair dresser mentioned slightly freezing boneless skinless raw chicken breasts. Then slicing them thinly on the diagonal.  Add the raw thin sliced chicken to the pot for the last 2 minutes of cooking. 
• Substitute shrimp for the chicken. Shrimp cooks quickly, so add raw shrimp at the end
• Potato or pumpkin might be good instead of the mushrooms and corn.