Thai Red Curry Lemongrass Soup

Need some cozy today? This vegan Thai Red Curry Lemongrass Soup recipe is both easy and healthy! Plenty of veggies complement the spicy, creamy coconut broth with hints of ginger and lemongrass.

The main attraction though? Those chewy, totally slurpable rice ramen noodles! Oh. so. good

Thai Red Curry Lemongrass Soup

This vegan Thai Red Curry Lemongrass Soup recipe is easy and healthy! Plenty of veggies complement the spicy, creamy coconut broth with hints of ginger and lemongrass

Course Dinner, Soup

Cuisine Asian-Inspired, Thai-Inspired

Keyword Easy, Plant-Based, Plant-Based Noodle Soup, Spicy, Vegan

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Total Time 45

Servings

Author Kate

Ingredients

12-15 shiitake mushrooms washed destemmed and thickly sliced
1 quart warm water
1 tbsp salt
2 stalks fresh lemongrass trimmed, scored and bent to expose the inner leaves; see Recipes Notes
2 scallions washed and thinly sliced with the white parts separated from the green parts
1 tbsp garlic minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger minced
2 tbsp red curry paste I like Thai Kitchen's red curry paste
1/4 cup tamari
1 1/2 quarts water
2 bunches broccolini washed and trimmed
1 tbsp safflower oil or other high-temp tolerant oil
1/2 pint grape tomatoes rinsed and sliced in half
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp sugar
1 5 oz can full-fat unsweetend coconut milk
1 8 oz package pad Thai rice noodles cooked in accordance with the package directions; I like Lotus Foods' Organic Traditional Pad Thai Rice Noodles
1 cup fresh baby spinach loosely packed
Thai red chilies washed, deseeded and sliced
sriracha sauce optional, for additional spice

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400º.
Prepare a brine solution by combining one quart of warm water with 1 tbsp of salt. Stir until the salt has dissolved, then add the shiitake mushrooms. Place a small bowl or dish over the mushrooms to fully submerge them. Set aside for 10 minutes. See Recipe Notes.
Warm a large stockpot on low heat. Add the coconut oil and heat until shimmering. See Recipe Notes.
Add the lemongrass, scallion whites, fresh garlic and fresh ginger. Stir and cook until fragrant. About 1-2 minutes.
Add the red curry paste and increase the heat to medium. Stir to thoroughly coat the aromatics with red curry paste. Sauté until the red curry paste darkens in color. About 2-3 minutes.
Add the tamari and 1 1/2 quarts of water. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
While the broth is simmering, drain the shiitake mushrooms and pat them dry. Then spread them and the broccolini out on a baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tbsp safflower oil and use your hands to coat the mushrooms and broccolini. Roast the vegetables on the middle rack for ~20 minutes, pausing to toss the vegetables halfway through. See Recipe Notes.
When tossing the roasted vegetables, add the tomatoes to the baking sheet before returning it to the oven.
Retrieve the lemongrass stalks from the broth and discard.
Add the lime juice, sugar and coconut milk to the broth. Simmer for 2-3 minutes to meld the flavors and warm the broth.
Prepare each serving bowl with a serving of pad Thai rice noodles. Add some roasted shiitake mushrooms, broccolini, fresh baby spinach and blistered tomatoes.
Add the broth to each bowl and top with scallion greens, Thai red chilies and sriracha sauce, if desired.

Notes

Prep the lemongrass stalks by trimming the bulb at the root end as well as upper part of the stalk. Use the remaining middle portion of the stalk (about 3 inches) to infuse the broth. To do this, score each stalk with a sharp knife, then bend it back and forth to expose the inner leaves, but leaving the stalk intact. The stalk will simmer in the broth during the cooking process and be removed before serving.

Brining mushrooms before roasting them ensures that they’ll stay plump and moist during the roasting process instead of becoming dry and crispy.

Coconut oil has a low smoke point, so you don’t want the pot to be hot when you add it. Just warm the pot a little bit before adding the oil.

Unlike coconut oil, safflower oil has a high smoke point. It’s neutral in flavor and inexpensive. It’s a great choice for roasting vegetables.

Good Old Vegan

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