Tom Kha Gai Crock Pot Version - Honey Ghee and Me

INGREDIENTS 

2 cans coconut milk (28 oz total, not light)

1 qt chicken stock (homemade or good quality store-bought)

approx 1.5 lbs thinly sliced chicken breasts (see note below)

4 dried bird’s eye chiles (or one fresh, or a chopped Serrano if easier to find)

2 limes, juiced, plus 1 lime cut into wedges for garnish

4 kaffir lime leaves (or lime zest, see note below)

1 lemongrass stalk

4 slices fresh galangal or ginger, about 1/2 inch thick

2 tsp fish sauce (or salt if preferred), plus more as desired

1 large handful baby shiitake mushrooms, approx 15-20 (oyster or straw work well, too)

1 small sweet pepper, thinly sliced- optional- cook in soup or use as garnish

1 cup water chestnuts

1 cup snap peas

1/2 cup chopped green onions

handful chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish
 

to garnish: fresh basil (preferably Thai), cilantro, lime wedges, crushed red pepper or sriracha (for some spice), and some sliced pepper or a whole chile if desired for presentation 

 

*for chicken- use boneless/skinless to get even thin pieces- preferable aesthetically.  Some people prefer bone-in though, as it adds more flavor- in that case, add in the whole piece, then once done, pull apart the meat and remove the skin and bones from the soup.

*there’s no perfect substitution for kaffir leaves, but they can be tricky to find… if you can’t get your hands on lime leaves, use 1 tbsp of lime zest instead, about two limes worth.  (You can use the zest and juice from the same limes.)

*for variations, try adding in bamboo shoots, rice, shrimp, mini corn… or get creative!

DIRECTIONS

Prep and chop all ingredients…

A note about lemongrass: I have always smashed the stalk with the flat side of a knife,

removed any tough outer layers, then chopped it into thirds or quarters- this helps

make it easy to remove once cooked- flavors are in, lemongrass isn’t

Then I went to Thailand… 

There, the lemongrass was chopped into teeny bits, as seen above, so I tried this at home

My personal opinion: while it adds flavor to chop it up more, the little pieces are very tough

to chew and tough to remove, so the larger pieces that can be easily removed are preferred instead

Add the coconut milk, chicken broth, lime, galangal/ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves,

fish sauce, chiles, lime juice, chicken, mushrooms, and sweet pepper (is using) to the pot

Cook on high for approx 3 hours or on low for 5 to 7 hours

Add the water chestnuts, green onions, and a small handful of fresh cilantro leaves

If adding anything extra, such as bamboo, mini corn, etc, add them now

Let it all cook in there for approx 10-15 minutes more, to let the recent additions settle in

Taste and season as desired- add crushed red pepper or sriracha for an extra kick 🙂

(Especially with Crock Pot soups, it can be tricky to know how things will turn out once cooked, so it’s always best to start on the safe side, then add more in the end as needed.  Since chicken broths vary in salt levels, chiles range in heat, etc, better to be safe than sorry… this may need some sprucing up depending on those various factors.  You may want more fish sauce, more spice, or maybe even some sweet- some people like to add honey in to sweeten their tom kha up.  Do what you need to make you happy!)

Before serving, remove lemongrass stalks, lime leaves, any whole chiles and ginger chunks

Alternatively, you can ladle it up as is and let people pick things out as they wish

Add in the peas just before serving

Ladle soup into bowls, then top with fresh basil (it really is so good in this!), cilantro,

more crushed red pepper or sriracha, and some sliced red pepper if desired

Enjoy!