10 February 2018

Thai Curry Soup


I made this recipe a few weeks ago now and had every intention of posting it the following week...but life's been a little crazy (and a lot exciting) and I just haven't managed to find the time. I've just moved to London, so have been wrapped up with work, moving house, life and plenty of vegan food! I think I must be on a mission to try all of the vegan treats in London in just one week...having already attended Vegan Nights London and Hackey Downs vegan market...to try some of the incredible vegan foods London eateries have to offer! 


This next recipe is absolutely irresistible...fragrant Thai curry soup, made entirely from scratch, including the delicious yellow Thai curry paste. With flavours of ginger, lemongrass and coriander and birdseye chilies, this soup is exactly what you need to warm you from the inside, on cold winter days. In the broth, you can find crunchy baby corn, mange tout, carrots, Tenderstem broccoli, wild rice and melt-in-your-mouth silken tofu. 



This soup makes a wonderful lunch or dinner and the list of ingredients may look a little daunting, but I promise it's worth it! Simply pop them all in your food processor and you have your own Thai curry paste in just a few minutes! The broth has a nice level of spice to it, you definitely know the chilies are there, but you can taste the flavours and it's not a burning level of hot, but you can always add more or fewer chilies to suit your tastes - I've included a little note below the ingredients for this.


This soup is packed with vitamins, minerals, wholegrain carbs, proteins and some fat from the coconut milk too - a nutritious balance to keep you fuller for longer and power you through the day. The rice, tofu, broccoli and coconut milk make the soup rich in iron...essential for your red blood cells and energy levels! Vitamin C from the veggies will help to keep your immune system in check and calcium from the broccoli, tofu and coconut milk for healthy bones and teeth. This soup is full of plant power and will leave you feeling incredible (and wanting more!), even better, the whole soup takes under 30 minutes from start to finish! 
Thai Curry Soup | Serves: 4-6 | Time: 25-30 mins

You'll need

  • Chopping board
  • Knife
  • Food processor*
  • Large saucepan
  • Wooden spoon
  • Veg peeler

Ingredients

Yellow Curry paste
  • 4-8 green birds eye chilies**
  • 2 shallots
  • 2-inch piece ginger (use galangal if available)
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 sticks lemongrass
  • 1/3 cup fresh coriander (leaves and stalks)
  • 5 lime leaves
  • zest and juice lime
  • 1/2 tsp white pepper
  • 1 tsp dried Thai basil or 1 handful fresh Thai basil
  • 1 tsp miso
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 2 tbsp turmeric
  • 2 tsp brown sugar
Soup
  • 1 tsp oil
  • 1 tin coconut milk
  • 1 pack silken tofu
  • 100g baby corn
  • 100g mange tout
  • 2 small carrots
  • 100g Tenderstem broccoli
  • 250g cooked wholegrain and wild 
  • 4 tsp bouillon
  • 1L (4 cups) boiling water
Notes

*I'd highly recommend using a food processor, if using something like a nutribullet, finely chop all the ingredients before adding to the blender. 
**I used 4 chilies, for a spiced, but not mouth-burning hot curry. 
Very mild - 2 chilies
Slightly spiced - 4 chilies
Hot - 6 chilies
Very hot - 8 chilies

Method

  1. To make the curry paste, peel and quarter the shallots, peel the garlic and ginger and roughly chop. Chop the lemongrass into 1cm pieces and add all the ingredients for the curry paste to the food processor and blend until smooth.
  2. Fry 4 tbsp of the curry paste (you may have a little left over) with a tsp of oil on a medium heat for a few minutes. Open the can of coconut cream and scrape off the thick cream from the top, add this to the pan and allow to melt.
  3. Peel and chop the carrots into rounds, then add the coconut water, boiling water, bouillon and carrots to the pan, bring to the boil and allow to simmer for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, prep the other veggies - chop the broccoli into 1-inch pieces, the baby corn in half lengthways and the tofu into cubes. Add the veg and rice into the broth and simmer for 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning and add salt as needed. Serve up and enjoy!
Cassidy xx