There is something beautifully comforting about curry flavors and Thai curries in particular have a uniquely bright, cheerful and herby aroma. Thai curry is typically a little lighter than Indian and Japanese curry, which makes it perfect for a hearty bowl of soup.
This Thai lemongrass curry chicken soup is flavored with stalks of fresh lemongrass, garlic, ginger, onions and curry paste along with fresh herbs and lime juice. All of these flavors come together to ride the line between light and comforting in a truly delicious way. You are going to love this soup…
Let’s get started…
Let’s start with the lemongrass. I am lucky enough to have a beautifully generous friend who shares her gardens produce with me, but you can find fresh lemongrass stalks at some grocery store and most Asian markets.
Lemongrass has a bright, citrusy flavor and contains anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory properties making it both a delicious and healthy addition to this soup.
Prepare the stalks of lemongrass by peeling off the rough outer layers and chopping off the ends of the stalks. Slice the lemongrass into 2-3 inch sections and use the side of a large kitchen knife to crush the lemongrass. Often referred to as “bruising” the lemongrass, this helps to release the flavors that can be trapped inside.
Lemongrass is edible, but the top 80% of the stalks are too tough to enjoy and the bottom of the stalks need to be very finely chopped or ground into a paste. The flavors are fantastic, but the texture can be tough to handle, so I leave the stalks in 2-3 inch portions that will be easy to remove when the time comes.
Now that your lemongrass is ready to go, place a large bone-in skin-on chicken breast into a large pot along with the lemongrass and add 8 cups of water.
Place the pot over medium high heat and bring the water to a low boil. Cover the pot and boil for about 30 minutes.
Carefully transfer the chicken onto a plate and set it aside to cool. If you have a second big pot, set the pot with your stock aside for now, but if you want to re-use that same pot, strain the liquid into a large bowl and return the pot to the oven over medium heat.
While the chicken is boiling, dice a large yellow onion, mince up 4 cloves of garlic, grate a 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peel and slice 2 large carrots and gather 3 tablespoons of red curry paste, a large lime, 15 ounces of coconut milk, 8 ounces of rice noodles, a small bunch of cilantro, 8-10 fresh basil leaves, some salt and black pepper and a chicken bouillon cube, which is optional to add a punch of salty flavor. You can definitely leave it out if you don’t have some on hand or don’t like using them.
Once the chicken is cooling, place a large pot over medium heat and add a splash of olive oil and the diced onion. Cook the onion for about 10 minutes and once the onions have softened, add the minced garlic, grated ginger and 3 tablespoons of red curry paste and stir to combine.
Let the garlic, ginger and curry paste cook for about 60 seconds while stirring and then add the strained stock you boiled the chicken in into the pot. Discard the lemongrass from that stock. It has done its job.
As soon as the chicken is cool enough to touch, shred the meat and add it into the pot along with the sliced carrots, the juice from a large lime, 14 ounces of coconut milk and 8 ounces of rice noodles and bring everything to a simmer.
Simmer the soup for about 10 minutes and then reduce the heat and do a quick taste test. This soup will need a generous pinch of salt and black pepper and then a small bunch of cilantro, some fresh basil leaves and the juice from a large lime.
Once all of this has been incorporated, taste the soup again. I almost always end up adding more salt and lime juice, but its better to taste as you add instead of throwing it all in and regretting it later.
There is a lot of flavor brought in by the garlic, ginger, curry paste and coconut milk, but if you taste this soup and are not blown away, add more salt and lime juice. Salt helps to make all of the beautiful flavors in this soup really shine and the fresh lime juice balances everything out. If you added the chicken bouillon, you may not end up needing additional salt.
Salt and lime juice is an amazing addition to this already fabulous soup.
This Thai lemongrass curry chicken soup is one of those soups that are perfect for anything from a warm summer day to a cold, rainy evening. It tastes good when you feel great and even better when you are fighting something off. All of that lemongrass, garlic, ginger and curry makes my body happy and it definitely will make you happy too.
The only thing this soup needs is an oversized bowl, a nice big spoon and maybe some fresh baked bread and you won’t be hearing anything from me for at least the next 10-15 minutes…. because I will be in soup heaven…
Thai Lemongrass Curry Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 1 large bone-in skin-on chicken breast
- 8 cups of water
- 2 stalks of fresh lemongrass, peeled and sliced
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 3 tablespoons of red curry paste
- 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
- 1 large lime
- 14 ounces of full fat coconut milk
- 8 ounces of rice noodles (about 3mm)
- a small bunch of fresh cilantro
- 8-10 fresh basil leaves
- salt and black pepper
- 1 chicken bouillon cube (optional)
- lime wedges (garnish)
Instructions
- Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a large pot and add a large bone-in chicken breast and 2 stalks of chopped and bruised lemongrass
- Cover the pot and boil for 30 minutes
- Transfer the pot off of the heat, remove the chicken breast and let it cool on a plate
- Place a large pot over medium heat and add a tablespoon of olive oil and the diced onions. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the onions have softened
- Add the minced garlic, grated ginger and 3 tablespoons of red curry paste and cook for about 60 seconds while stirring continuously
- Strain the liquid from the first pot in with the curry and vegetables and stir until fully combined. Discard the lemongrass.
- Shred the chicken and add it to the soup along with the sliced carrots, the juice from a large lime, coconut milk and the noodles
- Bring the soup to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes
- Add fresh cilantro, basil and a generous pinch of salt and black pepper
- Serve hot with lime wedges
