2000s Recipes + Menus

Thai-Style Chicken Soup with Basil

Serves4 to 6 (main course)
  • Active time:45 min
  • Start to finish:1 1/2 hr (not including making stock)
February 2009
It’s hard to understand why a soup that looks so simple needs to include so many ingredients. Why not just stir in a dollop of store-bought Thai curry paste instead and call it a day? One spoonful will reveal the answer: This soup has many layers in its complexity, but the overall effect is of cleanness and freshness—in short, well worth a trip to an Asian market. Adding a generous amount of chicken and serving the soup over jasmine rice might not be strictly traditional, but it transforms it into a satisfying meal.
  • 2 fresh lemongrass stalks, root end trimmed and 1 or 2 outer layers discarded
  • 2 large shallots, thinly sliced
  • 2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 qt rich and flavorful chicken stock; or 5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth diluted with 3 cups water
  • 1 (14-oz) can diced tomatoes in juice, drained, reserving juice
  • 2 oz tamarind from a pliable block (a 2-inch cube), chopped
  • 3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
  • 2 (2-inch-long) fresh Thai chiles, thinly sliced
  • 2 fresh or frozen Kaffir lime leaves
  • 1 (2-inch) piece peeled ginger, thinly sliced
  • 1 lb skinless boneless chicken breast
  • 1/4 lb snow peas, sliced 1/4 inch thick
  • 1/3 cup packed basil leaves (preferably Thai)

  • Accompaniment:

    cooked jasmine rice
  • Cut off and discard top of lemongrass, leaving 6-inch stalks, then finely chop. Cook lemongrass, shallots, and garlic in oil in a large heavy pot over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until well browned, 12 to 15 minutes.
  • Add stock, reserved tomato juice, tamarind, fish sauce, chiles, lime leaves, and ginger and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes.
  • While soup simmers, freeze chicken breast just until slightly firm, 20 to 30 minutes, then thinly slice crosswise.
  • Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve into a large saucepan, pressing hard on and then discarding solids. Return to a simmer and stir in chicken, diced tomatoes, snow peas, and basil. Gently simmer just until chicken is cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Season with additional fish sauce and salt.
Cooks’ notes: 
  • Soup, without chicken, diced tomatoes, snow peas, and basil, can be made 3 days ahead and chilled (covered once cool).
  • We’ve also got a web-exclusive recipe using the leftover tamarind.

Recipe by Ruth Cousineau

Photograph by Mikkel Vang

Keywords
ruth cousineau,
thai,
soup,
poultry,
buy this make that

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