Thai coconut chicken soup

[NancyDz]

YUM! thanks for posting this, I eat a thai chicken soup at a restaurant here and love it.. very happy to have a recipe...

Is there anything I can substitute for the lemon grass? I dont think I've seen that for sale anywhere local.


Nancy

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

Quote:
I typically substitute galangal for ginger. There's ginger in this recipe ... some galangal would be a nice, authentic addtion, but I'd try one for the other.

hmmm . . . must try! thanks for sharing!

 

[wombat]

If you don't have lemon grass, lemon zest is the best substitute. If you don't have that, try a tablespoon of lemon juice. Not the same, but you'll still get a bit of the lemmony-sour that you want in this soup.

Fresh stalks are best, and you can grow them indoors with a bit of work. If you can find it at an asian market in your area, or get your grocer to order some, you can use some plants for starters and simply root them in an indoor pot. Start them in water first, and when they develop roots, plant them. They can be tricky to get started, but are fairly hardy once established. (Just take a few stalks being sold as "food", and root them!)

If you're willing to pay mail order prices for fresh:
http://www.importfood.com/freshthaiproduce.html

Dried is not quite as nice, but more economical to buy via mail order.

You can get dried lemon grass here:
http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeyslemongrass.html

... and Galangal:
http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysgalangal.html

Edit: Fixed the Penzy's URLs, the "search" ones went to a blank search page, and not to the products I'd suggested. These work.

 

[NancyDz]

Thanks wombat!

 

[Dragonfly Ranch]

Quote:
What are your thoughts on lemon grass that comes in a jar. Not sure what it is packed in - some type of clear liquid. I used fresh this weekend when I made it and it was outstanding. Having it for leftovers tonight.

Sandee

 

[wombat]

I can usually get it fresh where I live. I have some dried that I keep around for convenience.

I've not tried any that came in a jar. What's it preserved in? Nothing on an ingredients list? Cut pieces only keep in water for a few weeks, so I'd think some sort of brine and/or vinegar perhaps?

 

[Dragonfly Ranch]

Quote:
This has got me really curious now. I have some at home and will check the jar this evening and let you know what it is. May be that is why I still have the jar sitting around since I would prefer fresh.

Sandee

 

[Germaine_11.20]

 

[OccamsTazer]

The red curry paste has the galangal root in it

I had a hard time with previous recipes because I couldn't find galangal *anywhere*

I noticed the soup's flavors kinda muddle with refrigeration, but a squirt of lime perks it back up.

 

[wombat]

Both Penzy's and the Importedfoods links I posted carry galangal. I've got a huge jar from Penzy's.