I used to love ordering Tom Kha Gai at Thai restaurants, which is a coconut lemongrass soup with chicken in it. The theme of this month’s raw-food potluck in DC was coconuts, so I decided to see if I could make something reminiscent of the Tom Kha Gai of my memories. Lots of pleasant surprises while working with...
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Ingredients

4 cups water
12 key limes or 3-4 normal limes (juiced)
2 shoots of lemongrass (minced)
1½ inch piece of ginger (grated)
¼ teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon chili flakes
1 tablespoon dulse flakes
2 tablespoons red miso
1 tablespoon Bragg's Amino Acids
1 bunch cilantro (minced)
1 head bok choy (chopped, without greens)
4 cup mung bean sprouts (dehydrated overnight)
5 mature coconuts (water saved, meat juiced)

Recipe Directions

1. Dehydrate the mung bean sprouts overnight or until very small and withered looking: they will become like noodles and absorb the flavors of the soup.

2. Crack open 5 coconuts, save the coconut water, and put the meats through the juicer. You may need to clean out your juicer half way through the process because (your very own homemade!) coconut butter will accumulate around the centrifuge. (Save this! And also save the fiber: it is, essentially, your own homemade shredded coconut, great for pie crusts, macaroons, etc.)

3. Pour the coconut “juice” with the coconut water into a big pot with a lid. Squeeze in lime juice. (Lime squeezers facilitate this task, especially if you’re using itty bitty key limes!)

4. In a separate bowl, mix Amino Acids with miso and some water until smooth and liquid, (so you don’t get clumps when you add it in) then add to soup pot. Stir in chili powder, chili flakes, and dulse. (If you prefer, you can substitute Nama Shoyu for the dulse-amino acids-miso mixture. The stuff makes me break out, which is why I didn’t use it.)

5. Grate ginger (or mince very small if you don’t have a ginger grater) and add to pot. Remove big stems from cilantro, mince (I use a mezza-luna knife) and add to pot. Remove outer leaves from lemongrass, mince, and add to pot.

6. Add dehydrated mung bean sprouts to pot.

7. Cover and let sit for 2 hours or store in fridge for 4-6 hours. (So that the mung beans absorb the flavor of the soup!)

8. Taste! Then stir in pure water until the taste and texture satisfy you.

9. Remove the greens from a head of bok choy, chop, and add to pot.

10. Voila! You’re done! Serve warm by removing all the trays from your dehydrator and putting the pot in there for 30 minutes at 150 degrees (no, the soup won’t get anywhere near that temperature).

Note:

There might be a little bit of coconut butter floating on top in the pot. It will melt and make the soup all the yummier when you warm it before serving.

Za's Thoughts

By Za

I used to love ordering Tom Kha Gai at Thai restaurants, which is a coconut lemongrass soup with chicken in it.

The theme of this month’s raw-food potluck in DC was coconuts, so I decided to see if I could make something reminiscent of the Tom Kha Gai of my memories.

Lots of pleasant surprises while working with coconuts: I learned how to make my own shredded coconut and coconut butter!

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Comments

Top voted

Za

Jul 20, 2009

51 votes
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I know! Plus you get fresh homemade coconut butter and shredded coconut! All for the low price of...(kidding)

greenie

Jan 06, 2010

50 votes
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This looks delicious. I have a question about the coconut, though. How do you separate the coconut meat from the hard brown casing? I can get the meat out of the shell ok, but it has this hard brown skin on it. How to remove that? Thanks!

AlexS

Jul 11, 2009

49 votes
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The soup tasted like a good cooked soup. Thanks! :)

All

randommara

Apr 03, 2011

42 votes
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This sounds awesome! I love Thai and it's a good use for my Champion which I don't use much. Thanks for the recipe!

Sweet Adeline

Apr 02, 2011

40 votes
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can you substitute chestnuts for the coconuts used to make the juice?

carrie6292

Oct 12, 2010

38 votes
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Greenie - Use a spoon to loosen the coconut meat from the shell. Once you do that, use the back of the spoon to scrape off any leftover shell...

greenie

Jan 06, 2010

50 votes
+
Vote up!
-
Vote down!

This looks delicious. I have a question about the coconut, though. How do you separate the coconut meat from the hard brown casing? I can get the meat out of the shell ok, but it has this hard brown skin on it. How to remove that? Thanks!

Top Voted

Za

Jul 20, 2009

51 votes
+
Vote up!
-
Vote down!

I know! Plus you get fresh homemade coconut butter and shredded coconut! All for the low price of...(kidding)

Top Voted

AlexS

Jul 11, 2009

49 votes
+
Vote up!
-
Vote down!

The soup tasted like a good cooked soup. Thanks! :)

Top Voted

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