Reviewed: Oct. 30, 2005

My boyfriend and I love spicy food, especially Thai food, and were both absolutely entertained and pleased by this recipe. I used "The Spice Hunter" dried lemon grass, and all of the fish sauce since we are fans of it. That part I will repeat. But next time I will make it with more chicken or shrimp, rice noodles, and mushrooms. Once you make this you will find many different ways to make it your own. 2 Thumbs up.

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Leapin' Laura

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: New Hope, Minnesota, USA

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Reviewed: Oct. 30, 2005

I was really keen to try and recreate the fabulous Tom Ka Gai we always order at a local Thai restaurant. I used this recipe, and I am SO disappointed. I made a 30 mile round-trip journey today specifically to get the ingredients (our Thai restaurant has a grocery attached, and I thought it would be good to get the same produce that they themselves use) - namely the fresh lemon grass, and also galanga, which is similar to ginger root, and which I have read is a more authentic Thai ingredient. Although it tastes alright - nothing at all like the restaurant's soup, unfortunately - it smells so disgusting that I can't bring myself to eat it. This was a pretty expensive waste of time >:(

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Caroline C

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: Oct. 24, 2005

This took me a lot of work (more like two hours than one with all the chopping, although I may just be slow in the kitchen). But in the end it was worth it. Used chicken broth instead of water & reduced the red pepper a bit, otherwise followed recipe as written. The soup had GREAT texture and flavor. It was a bit spicy for me but my husband loved it. If you use whole lemongrass, chop it very large (like 3-inch pieces) so it's more easily picked out of the finished soup.

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BECCABRIDE

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

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Reviewed: Oct. 13, 2005

This was FANTASTIC! Don't change a thing about it, it's absolutely perfect. Husband and I inhaled the entire pot of soup in about 5 minutes. Definitely the perfect thing to sate a Thai-craving. Thank you so much for sharing, I'll be making this about three times a week!

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FLYNNE

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Reviewed: Sep. 30, 2005

Loved it! I made it for dinner the first night the weather turned cold, and it really warms you from the inside out. My husband and I are wimps--I put in about 2/3 the amount of red pepper and may try it with half next time. I seldom can get fresh lemon grass at my grocer, but the produce section carries a lemon grass paste in a plastic squeeze tube (Garden Gourmet brand, I think) that worked quite well. Lovely, quick warming soup--will make it lots this winter.

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MIRAJOTOM

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Reviewed: Jul. 4, 2005

I modified this to suit what I had at home. I didn't have peanut oil (used olive oil)left out the ginger, lemon greass, fish sauce and bok choy. I used 2 cans coconut milk, and only 3/4 cup of chicken broth (instead of water) I also skipped the cilantro. I added rice noodles with 10 minutes cooking time left, and I ended up with a wonderful dish of noodles and sauce- which was just excellent! The only thing I would have changed would be to add more broth, since I needed more liquid, but it was excellent the way it was. So maybe it wasn't this recipe in the end but this was what I started from anyway. I think no matter what you do to this it turns out well, so have fun with it!!

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MUM2CADEN

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Reviewed: Jun. 19, 2005

I followed this recipe exactly as it is written, and the soup is wonderful! I have never used fish sauce before, and when I smelled it I was reluctant to add it to the soup, but it added a wonderful flavor and the finished soup isn't fishy at all. I plan to make this soup for company, it was very easy to make and just delicious! *** I have now also tried this soup with Lite Coconut Milk and the flavor and consistency just isn't the same. I recommend using whole coconut milk, and don't be worried about the added fat, the fat in coconut milk is good for you!

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BECCADAWN

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Reviewed: Jun. 14, 2005

This thai chicken soup is delicious. It's definitely a keeper! Nice heat. I used baby bok choi (the green leaves as well as the white stalks). The addition of bean thread, sea kelp, or rice noodles would be a plus. My partner wasn't keen on the texture of the lemongrass, so next time I may just smash the stalks & add them whole--so the flavor infuses the soup, but no tough bits at the bottom of the bowl.

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MARIAN88

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Reviewed: May 1, 2005

Husband said it is six stars. I read everyones reviews before I made this recipe. I followed their advice. I cut the red pepper in 1/2 and added sauted shrimp and cooked undon noodles at the end of the soup's simmer time. I did not add the cilantro. Left out the chicken. Think this would be great with blue mussels. I will do that the next time I make this. Use however much bok choy you have as this could use more than 2 cups. NOTE--LEMON GRASS IS LIKE BAY LEAFS, YOU DON'T EAT THEM

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RACHEL1070

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Anchorage, Alaska, USA

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Reviewed: Apr. 30, 2005

This is scrumptious! I used 4 fresh thai red peppers instead of crushed red pepper, and I added thai basil, dried shiitake mushrooms, and bean sprouts puchased from a local Oriental market. I also used frozen shredded lemongrass which helped reduce the prep time. After reading other reviews, I substituted half of the water with chicken broth and reduced the fish sauce a bit. Wow, it was delicious. I highly recommend this great recipe and look forward to trying it again! :)

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FSUGABRIELLE

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Reviewed: Apr. 17, 2005

This was so good! The fish sauce was gross, I've never cooked with it before, but once it's all incorporated in it just goes beautifully together. Don't omit it just because it smells horrible!

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JenInCalifornia

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Bakersfield, California, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 19, 2005

I was hoping this would come out similar to the soup I order at the local Thai restaurant, but it didn't at all. I wasn't a big fan of this. Thank you though!

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NATALIESHD

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Reviewed: Feb. 15, 2005

Used low-fat coconut milk, which worked just fine. A great dish that is simple to make!

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Christina

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Reviewed: Feb. 7, 2005

Great recipe! Next time I would cut the red pepper in half, as it was piping hot! I even broke out into a sweat while eating it. :-) I also used chicken broth instead of water, and it was nice and flavorful.

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WILLOWRUE

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Reviewed: Feb. 2, 2005

This was not as flavorful as I expected it to be.

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SEJENT

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Reviewed: Jan. 21, 2005

We are big Thai food fans and we were very pleased with how this turned out. Even though I didn't have all the ingredients, the recipe is very forgiving and it turned out excellent. My husband is Japanese and really knows his Asian food so the fact that he raved about it was a big plus for me!

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DTERESA

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Reviewed: Jan. 8, 2005

I love this soup! Adrienne, you are a goddess of Thai cuisine! The only changes I made - used chicken broth instead of water, doubled the coconut milk and halved the fish sauce per other reviewers comments and added the cilantro in the last 5 minutes of simmer. Perfect!

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LOOSENUP

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Reviewed: Nov. 23, 2004

This soup is my favorite, and every time I get the chance to go to a Thai restaurant I order it. So, I tried this recipe out to see if I could match the ones I've had at restaurants and it comes close. There is something missing, maybe the kaffir lime leaves would have done the trick. I followed some of the other reviews and used chicken stock instead of water, added more coconut milk and included a can of straw mushrooms (drained). I'll definitely try this again, but I'll add the lime leaves and see what happens.

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MPASCUA27

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Reviewed: Nov. 7, 2004

Fantastic recipe! I used it for my first foray into Thai food, and it turned out better than expected. I followed other reviewers' suggestions (increase coconut milk, replace water with chicken stock, reduce fish sauce and chili pepper) and the result was a delicious, creamy, savory soup that was even better than the tom ka gai I've had in restaurants. I couldn't find fresh lemon grass, so had to use dry. I solved the inedibility problem by putting it in a tea ball and boiling that with the soup. Probably didn't flavor it as much as it would have loose, but I experimentally tasted a leaf when it was done, and previous reviewers were right - it's tough and yucky; not something you want in your soup.

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Jabberwock

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Reviewed: Nov. 6, 2004

Awesome!! Added chicken broth instead of water.

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HOBNOB2002

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Adrienne's Tom Ka Gai

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