Thai Chicken Coconut Soup

Ingredients

• 3 shallots
• 1 Garlic clove
• 30 g ginger (1 piece)
• 3 stalks lemongrass
• 2 kaffir lime leaves
• 1 untreated lime
• 1 red chili pepper
• 3 tbsp neutral vegetable oil
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 star anise
• 800 ml chicken broth
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 chicken drumsticks
• 80 g snow peas
• 80 g green beans
• Salt
• 3 stalks spring onions
• 1 tsp fish sauce
• a touch palm sugar
• optional soy sauce
• 0.5 bunch fresh cilantro
• several lime slices

Instructions

1. 1.

   Peel and finely dice shallots, garlic, and ginger. Thoroughly wash lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, and lime. Grate the lime zest, squeeze out the juice. Cut lemongrass stalks into thirds. Wash chili pepper, halve it, remove seeds and inner membranes, and finely chop the flesh.

2. 2.

   Heat vegetable oil in a pot. Lightly sauté shallots, garlic, and ginger. Add lemongrass, lime leaves, lime zest, coriander seeds, star anise, and chili pepper; briefly stir. Pour in chicken broth and coconut milk, bring to a boil.

3. 3.

   Wash chicken drumsticks and add them to the soup. Simmer gently for 30 to 40 minutes.

4. 4.

   Meanwhile, trim snow peas and green beans, then blanch them sequentially in boiling salted water: snow peas for about one minute, beans for five minutes. Shock immediately in ice water, drain on a sieve. Slice snow peas lengthwise into thin strips; cut beans as desired.

5. 5.

   When the drumstick meat is tender and easily pulls from the bone, remove the drumsticks from the soup. Strip off the skin, fully detach the meat from the bones, removing cartilage. Tear or cut the meat into bite‑sized pieces and return it to the soup.

6. 6.

   Trim spring onions, wash, and slice into very fine rings. Add them with the beans and snow peas to the soup. Season the soup with fish sauce, lime juice, palm sugar, and optionally a pinch of salt or soy sauce; bring to a boil once more and ladle into bowls. Wash cilantro, dry, strip leaves, and scatter over the soup. Serve with lime slices.