Tom Ka Soup II

To celebrate 100,000 hits on my first Tom Ka soup post, I thought I would do a sequel.

This Tom Ka recipe is vegan but don't be scared!  It's just as delicious as the first version.

I didn't attempt to replace the flavor of the fish sauce with something else--it's just not possible--I've totally reworked the recipe.  I think it still has a very "Thai" flavor profile and is every bit as delicious.  

Tom Ka Vegan

                                   1 carton vegetable stock (4 cups)

                                   1 14 oz. can coconut milk

                                   1 stalk lemongrass

                                   1 4-inch piece fresh ginger

                                   1 bunch cilantro

                                   1/2 large yellow onion

                                   1 lime, juiced

                                   1 tablespoon sriracha or red curry paste (+/- to taste)

Use any combination of your favorite chopped vegetables including:

Pea pods, sweet peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, yellow squash, bean sprouts, cherry tomatoes,

broccoli, carrots, sliced onions, scallions, baby corn, cilantro, basil, fresh ginger, etc.

For more substance you could also add tofu or rice vermicelli. 

I used the lemon grass and ginger...

...the stems of a cilantro bunch and one half an onion to flavor the

vegetable broth as the base for the soup.  I've made this three time using three different vegetable stocks and they're all a little different.  The best version was the Pacific vegetable stock that was heavy on the carrots which made it sweeter.

Peel and slice the ginger, chop the lemon grass, onions, cilantro stems and simmer them in the vegetable stock for about 30 minutes.  Turn off heat and let cool before straining the broth.

When you're ready to serve the soup, return the broth to the pot, heat to a simmer and add coconut milk, sriracha (or chili paste) and lime juice.

While the broth is heating, chop up your vegetables and add them to serving bowls.  Here I've used pea pods, button and oyster mushrooms, sweet yellow papers, baby corn and julienned ginger.  I would guess it's about 1-1/2  cups of vegetables.

This amount of broth will make four good sized bowls of soup (using a little more than one cup of broth per serving).  

To garnish, I mixed some sriracha with some toasted sesame oil and drizzled the red oil on top of the soup and topped with some micro basil.

The broth is really aromatic and feels very restorative.  The spice from the sriracha feels great on the throat if you're feeling a little under the weather.

I hope you enjoy!