# Thai coconut soup **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 24, 2007, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366 "2007-03-24T22:40:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2007, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/1 "2007-03-24T22:40:13Z")
I know it has some other name, but it’s made from coconut milk, and has mushrooms in it. I always get it with little cubes of tofu in it, but most people get it with some kind of meat in it (not sure what kind). Anyway, does anyone have a good recipe that they’ve actually tried for this soup? I’ve had it at some restaurants where it’s DIVINE and at others where it’s meh, and some where it’s inedible. So I’m not comfy just snagging a random Google’d recipe, if I can get someone’s tried-and-true recipe instead. Note, at some places, the soup has an orange tint to it, and I’ve found this is a pretty good indicator that the soup will not be as good. The ones I’ve really liked have been very white and kinda creamy. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2007, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/2 "2007-03-24T23:05:00Z")
I have made this–and my own version is my favorite of all I have tried. The broth is made from one can of coconut milk melted in two cups of chicken broth. You can use light coconut milk, but it won’t be quite as good. Yes, the soup does have a gazillion calories. I find it is also important to squeeze lime juice into it (I squeeze a lime wedge then throw it in the bowl of soup), and to chop fresh cilantro and sprinkle it on top. I fill mine with shredded chicken and rice, but that’s just my preference. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2007, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/3 "2007-03-24T23:11:52Z")
I’ve generally seen it called Thom Kah Gah, or some spelling thereof. I love the stuff- it’s great when I’m feeling a little under the weather. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2007, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/4 "2007-03-24T23:23:55Z")
Sounds like Tom Kah to me. Add chicken, and around here they call it tom kah gai. Put Shrimp in instead and it’s tom kah goong. I always consider it thai coconut lemon grass soup. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2007, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/5 "2007-03-24T23:25:33Z")
Yeah I’ve usually seen it as “Tom \_\_\_\_” with the \_\_\_\_ being various variations or spellings… I never see it “my way” (with tofu) on the menu–I have to ask for it–so I don’t know what that would actually be called. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2007, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/6 "2007-03-24T23:52:34Z")
The two variations on it at my local Thai restaurant are tom kar kai and tom kar koong (sp?). There may be another one, too. It’s lovely! ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/7 "2007-03-25T01:44:11Z")
Here’s an old recipe from a dead website. Never did get around to trying it. I was surprised I’d even saved it. Tom Kha Tofu - Thai Coconut Citrus Soup For tofu: 1/2 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup Chinese black vinegar (or use an Asian fish sauce) 1/4 cup nutritional yeast 3 tablespoons sesame oil 1 quart vegetable stock 2 14 oz. cans coconut milk 3 cloves finely minced garlic 1/2 cup lime juice 1/4 cup lemon juice 1 pound tofu - not silky, but the kind in the container filled with water 1/3 cup thinly sliced galanga root (or substitute ginger), bruised 2 lemon grass stalks, trimmed and cut into 3-4" lengths. 1/4 cup fish sauce 2 tablespoons cayenne/red chili powder or to taste 2 tablespoons tabasco or to taste 2 tablespoon mustard powder 2 tablespoon onion powder 1/4 cup bruised kaffir lime leaves or 1 tablespoon grated lime zest black pepper to taste (I doubt you’ll want salt) 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, no stalks 12 oz. straw mushrooms two thinly sliced Thai red peppers Press the block of tofu under a weight between folded up paper towels to extract water from the tofu for 20 minutes. Cut the tofu into 1/2"-3/4" cubes. In a container with a lid or a big sealing plastic bag, add the soy sauce, black vinegar, sesame oil, nutritional yeast (different from baking yeast - you can find it in a health food store) and the tofu. Shake the container up to coat the tofu and let it sit for ten minutes. Preheat your over to 350 F Spread the tofu cubes out in a single layer on a baking sheet and put into the preheated 350 F oven for fifteen minutes. While the tofu is cooking, combine all the other ingredients except the mushrooms and cilantro together, stirring well. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. After the tofu has been in the oven for fifteen minutes, take it out, flip the cubes and put the tray back in the oven. Taste the soup. The lemongrass and galanga/ginger flavors will be developing, but test the balance between the veg/coconut milk and the citrus. If the soup feels too bland, add more lime juice and/or spicy stuff. If it tastes too spicy - well, tom kha tofu ain’t beanball. After the tofu has been in the oven for a total of thirty minutes, take the tray out of the oven and add the tofu, mushrooms and cilantro. Cook until the mushrooms are warmed through and the cilantro has wilted. Eating the soup is interesting. You can’t really eat the woody lemongrass and galanga root or the waxy kaffir lime leaves (certainly not in large quantities) , but they do add flavor in the pot. You can either strain the soup before adding the cilantro, mushrooms, and tofu, or you can deal with having a little pile of debris at the bottom of your soup bowl. I’ve always had it with debris at Thai restaurants, but your kitchen, your rules. Serve with coconut rice and a Thai iced tea. ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/8 "2007-03-25T02:13:00Z")
The recipe I’ve used is much more like the one [here](http://www.recipezaar.com/205578); fairly simple. I’ve seen the versions with galangal and kaffir lime leaves but I never did find either so used fresh ginger and lime peel as in this recipe and it was wonderful. No fish sauce for me, though; I don’t like my food fishy. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/9 "2007-03-25T02:19:45Z")
I like that simple recipe, Quiddity. I could sub veggie broth for the chicken broth and leave out the fish sauce… ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/10 "2007-03-25T02:24:33Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] I like that simple recipe, Quiddity. I could sub veggie broth for the chicken broth and leave out the fish sauce… [/QUOTE] Yep and probably put mushrooms or tofu in instead of the chicken. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/11 "2007-03-25T02:26:17Z")
well that goes without saying 😉 That’s how I have to ask for it at restaurants, too. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/12 "2007-03-25T03:19:30Z")
[QUOTE=Quiddity Glomfuster] No fish sauce for me, though; I don’t like my food fishy. [/QUOTE] Asian fish sauces typically aren’t. Fishy that is. At least they don’t impart a fishy taste to the food they’re cooked with. As someone noted recently ( **Cervaise** perhaps? ), if you’ve ever eaten Thai food, you’ve eaten fish sauce. In just about anything. - Tamerlane ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/13 "2007-03-25T03:20:57Z")
_Cook’s Illustrated_ magazine had a chicken version of this in a recent issue as well. My husband loved it. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/14 "2007-03-25T03:35:39Z")
[QUOTE=Tamerlane] f you’ve ever eaten Thai food, you’ve eaten fish sauce. [/QUOTE] LA LA LA LA LA LA LA I CAN’T HEAR YOU LA LA LA LA LA LA LA ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/15 "2007-03-25T03:43:11Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] LA LA LA LA LA LA LA I CAN’T HEAR YOU LA LA LA LA LA LA LA [/QUOTE] Found the thread - all about fish sauce 😉 ( I have to try that burger thing ) : > **[Can't I just leave out the fish sauce?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=401873)** > > Making a chicken curry with sweet potatoes. It’s got tons of flavors, of course, to say nothing of the curry powder, itself. Calls also for onions, sugar, chili flakes, lemon, garlic, and eventually coconut milk, etc. I just don’t like the taste... - Tamerlane ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/16 "2007-03-25T03:43:25Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] LA LA LA LA LA LA LA I CAN’T HEAR YOU LA LA LA LA LA LA LA [/QUOTE] You know that Worcestershire sauce is a fish sauce, too? ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/17 "2007-03-25T03:47:06Z")
Yes, and I do not eat anything with Worchestershire sauce in it (nor Caesar dressing). ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/18 "2007-03-25T04:01:04Z")
[QUOTE=Tamerlane] Asian fish sauces typically aren’t. Fishy that is. At least they don’t impart a fishy taste to the food they’re cooked with. - Tamerlane [/QUOTE] Fah. They say that about oyster sauce, too, and it’s a damn lie. Stuff is disgusting. I suppose if it’s well-hidden the way it is in Worcestershire sauce, its bearable. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/19 "2007-03-25T04:52:40Z")
Ah, Tom Kha Gai (as [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_kha_gai) has it, for whatever that’s worth.) My all-time favorite soup. I was obsessed with this stuff a couple years ago, and tried to make it at home. I don’t remember what recipe I used, but it was a disaster. I think it was because I used some substitutes for ingredients I couldn’t find. Even though the recipe allowed it, I think that’s what ruined my soup. So if at all possible, try to get as many of the original ingredients as you can. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2007, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366/20 "2007-03-25T05:06:43Z")
I see it’s already been answered, but I’ll verify and give the usual spelling over here: Tom Kha Kai. “Tom” is “boiled” or “to boil.” “Kai” is “chicken.” “Kha” usually means “leg,” but I’m not certain if it’s always chicken leg in it. Always chicken, though; I don’t think I’ve ever seen it with tofu here. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thai-coconut-soup/397366.md?page=2)