Easy to Make Thai Chicken and Prawn Soup.

with Coconut and Lime

This Thai Chicken and Prawn Soup for me sums up the joy of Thai cooking. Been both fresh and light yet with plenty of substance in the flavour department.  The soup uses a base of a green Thai curry paste

It’s not difficult to make and can be on the table in 20 minutes. This recipe is toned down to suit British pallets but its easy to boost the heat with more chilli.

You will need:-

Thai Chicken and Prawn Soup.

Serves 4 or 2 as a main course.

To serve.

Deal with the prawns first.

Take the prawns and remove the shells, but don’t throw them away. Pour the stock into the small pan and add the shells. Bring the pan to a simmer, then turn off the heat and leave it to stand while you get everything else ready. You will be amazed how much flavour will be extracted from the shells you would have probably thrown into the bin.

We now need to clean the prawns. Carefully make a shallow cut down the back of each tail. This will allow you to peel back the skin and pick out the gut. Don’t worry, it wouldn’t do you any harm, but the sight of it might put your guests off. Slice each prawn longways in half, then pop them into the fridge until needed.

Toasting your nuts!

Using the small frying pan lightly toast the cashew nuts keeping them moving all the time. When a light golden brown, tip them onto a small plate or saucer to cool.

Cooking the soup.

Place the wide pan over a low heat, then and add the sesame oil. Once the oil has heated up add the chicken and cook for three to four minutes on each side without letting the meat take on any colour.

While the chicken is cooking lightly crush the coriander seeds and chop the chilli. If you like a chilli kick, retain the seeds. For a milder version, just remove them.

Adding flavour.

Add the chilli, coriander, green Thai curry paste, and cumin to the pan and cook at the same low heat for another four minutes or so. Take the care that the spices don’t catch on the bottom of the pan and spoil the flavour. Slice the ginger into thin stirps and add it in.

Cooking the noodles.

While the chicken is gently cooking, its time to prepare the rice noodles. Place the dried noodles in a heatproof bowl and pour a generous amount of boiling water over them. let them stand for a couple of minutes then ease the strands apart with a fork. When the noodles are loosened up leave the bowl to stand while the soup is finishing.

Creating the Soup.

Take the infused stock and strain it over the chicken then increase the heat. The shells can now be discarded.

Add coconut milk, soy and lime leaves to the pan but hold back fish sauce and sugar for now,

Bring the pan to the simmer and cook for about  20 minutes. At the end of this the chicken should be cooked through, but check before going any further. If you are using a thermometer the centre of the meat should be 75˚c or more. If you don’t have one, cut one of the chicken pieces in half and check there is no pinkness in the meat.

Serving and seasoning.

When you are ready to serve add the strained noodles followed by the prawns. The prawns will cook in thirty seconds or so. Add one tablespoon of coriander and a dash of lime juice to the soup and stir in.

Have a taste and if the soup needs a little depth add a dash of Thai fish sauce and the palm sugar. Some brands of coconut milk can be quite sweet so you may or may not need all the sugar.

Crush the cashew nuts into small pieces and thinly slice the spring onions at an angle.

Ladle the soup into bowls then top with the rest of the fresh chopped coriander, spring onion and nuts. Then tuck in.

It’s a good idea to have fish sauce and sliced chilli on the table for your guests to help themselves. Then can then season the soup just the way they like it.

Enjoy Life!

John.

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©John Webber. 2023