This coconut-ty and creamy soup are so perfect to warm your soul, heart, and body during this time of year. Now skip the Takeout and Make This Vegan Tom Kha Gai Soup at Home! Is there anything better than slurping up a comforting soup on a cold day? No right!? I love soups during this time of the year. Whether you are under the weather, want to have something light for dinner/lunch, or make appetizers for a big party, soups are always the best. It warms up your soul! Tom Kha is one of my favorite Thai soups and I can’t believe I haven’t shared it on the blog until now. My family love it so much that I keep cooking at home especially during winter.
About Tom Kha Gai Soup
Tom Kha Gai is a traditional Thai dish normally served as an appetizer or starter.
Tom means soup,Kha means “galangal”, a type of aromatic root vegetable.And Gai means chicken
Tom Kha Soup or Tom Kha Gai is normally served with chicken (Gai) but since I am a vegetarian, I always opt for the vegetarian/vegan version of the soup. So the actual name of this soup is “Tom Kha” and whatever at the end is the main protein. For example, if your tom Kha has shrimp (Koong), it will be tom Kha Koong, if it has chicken (gai), it will be tom Kha gai and in our version, it will be Tom Kha Tofu. This soup is made with coconut milk, a couple of spices, lemongrass, galangal root, soy sauce, Thai chili, lots of vegetables, and tofu. It’s as delicious and flavorful. The main flavor comes from Galangal, lemongrass, kaffir limes, shallots, and Thai chili. These ingredients help bring out its unique flavor. I know these ingredients are not something that you would find in every grocery store. But trust me, these ingredients make all the difference! If you love this Thai coconut soup and want to make it at home, I suggest you find a good Asian store near you. You will get all these ingredients either in the produce section or in the freezer section. Buy extra and freeze them for future use, because I promise you’ll want to make this soup again. Soon!
Ingredients required
Tofu – Use firm tofuShallots – One of the aromatics for this dish. You can use any onions.Mushrooms – Use any mushrooms of your choice.Carrots –It adds a unique earthly, slightly sweet, flavor to the soup.Bell pepper – I used a red one, but you can use whichever is available in your fridge.Soy sauce – A common ingredient to use in place of fish sauce. I prefer to use low sodium soy sauce so the soup is not overly salty. You can also use coconut aminos in place of soy sauce.Galangal – A most important ingredient for this soup. You can easily find it in Asian grocery stores. However, if you still really want to make Tom Kha and can’t find it, substitute galangal with ginger.Thai chili – It adds some heat to the soup. Use it according to your spice level.Kaffir lime leaves and Lemongrass – Other key ingredients of this recipe. But if you can’t find it use lemon zest.Sugar – this helps balance all the savory flavors. You can also use coconut sugar if you prefer.Full-fat coconut milk and vegetable broth – I use canned coconut milk and I love how creamy it makes this soup when combined with the vegetable broth.Thai Basil and Cilantro – I like to add Thai Basil and cilantro at the very end to give the soup an earthy and herby flavor.Lime juice – it’s just the perfect finishing touch.Oil – I have used coconut oil.
Step by step process
Pre-prep work
First, drain the tofu and gently press it in a kitchen towel to get rid of extra moisture. Cut it into small bite-sized pieces. Keep it asidePound lemongrass and galangal with mortar and pestle. This way, the aroma, and the natural oil will be released from them. Tear the kaffir limes into small pieces. Keep everything aside.
For Flavorful Stock
Heat oil in a pot. Add chopped shallots, galangal, lemongrass, and red Thai chilies. Saute for 4 to 5 minutes on medium heat, stirring frequently.Now add vegetable stock and kaffir limes. Boil everything uncovered for 15 minutes on medium to high heat. This step will bring out all the flavors from the aromatics.Now switch off the flame and strain it through a mesh strainer. Discard all the aromatics and keep the stock aside.
Le’s Make Vegan Tom Kha Soup
Take the same pot (or a new one), add coconut milk, prepared stock, tofu, mushrooms, bell pepper, and carrots. Turn on the flame.Cook everything on medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes or until all the vegetables are slightly tender. The texture of the vegetables should be such that you should be able to feel some crunch yet it’s cooked.Tip – DONT cooks this soup on high flame. Else the soup might curdle or it might release lots of oil from coconut milk.Now add salt, soy sauce, sugar, and lime juice. Cook for another 2 minutes. Switch off the flame. Add Thai basil leaves and cilantro. Stir well.
Serve hot. Enjoy!
Tip – you can serve it with Jasmine rice to make a complete meal.
More Soup Recipes
Instant Pot Moroccan Lentil SoupVeg Manchow SoupBroccoli Almond SoupVegetable Thai Curry Noodle SoupGinger Garlic Carrot Soup
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