D is for Dinner: Tom Kha Gai soup

Absinthe chef Patrick Garland may be fresh off a win at Gold Medal Plates Ottawa, but he's got an even bigger challenge ahead of him today on D is for Dinner.

All in a Day's asked Garland to come up with a dish based on whatever's been lingering in the darkest regions of his cupboards… It's a request inspired by CBC Ottawa's food fantasy challenge for Project Give.

LAST WEEK | Wild rice, barley, squash burger with fall slaw and vinaigrette

Here's Garland's recipe for Tom Kha Gai, a Thai soup that features the coconut milk that had been sitting at the back of the Absinthe pantry.

Tom Kha Gai soup

Ingredients (for the broth):

• 1 litre of chicken stock
• 1.5 pucks of palm sugar
• 3 stalks of lemongrass, smashed and chopped
• 2 peeled and sliced shallots
• 1 bunch of coriander with roots
• 2 bulbs of galangal, smashed and chopped

​Ingredients (remainder):

• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1 can of coconut cream
• 10 large mushrooms (julienned or torn, depending on the mushroom)
• 3 boneless chicken thighs, julienned
• 3 tablespoons of fish sauce
• 1/2 bunch of coriander leaves
• 3 limes worth of lime juice
• 6 sliced and seeded birds' eye chilies

Directions:

1. Make a broth with the ingredients listed in that section above.
2. Allow the broth to simmer until it develops a deep flavour.
3. Strain it and allow it to cool; the broth will keep in the fridge for five days or in the freezer for almost forever.
4. Add the coconut milk and the chicken cold to the broth and gently poach for about 20 minutes.
5. While it's cooking, slice the chilies and set them aside in a bowl with the fish sauce and the lime juice.
6. Once the chicken is three-quarters cooked, add the mushrooms and finish cooking the chicken.
7. Ladle the soup into bowls and mix with the reserved lime juice. Taste until you get a nice mix of sweet, sour and salty. Garnish with coriander leaves.