Thai Coconut Lemongrass Soup

Name: Vegan Thai Coconut Lemongrass Soup
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 7 oz shiitake mushrooms ((200 g)); 14 oz tofu ((400 g)); 1.7 oz rice vermicelli ((50 g)); 20 cherry tomatoes; 2 bok choy or water spinach; 2 handful fresh cilantro; 5 shallots; 1 tbsp grated ginger; 3 chili peppers; 3 tbsp coconut oil; 1.7 oz Thai curry paste ((50 g)); 3 lemongrass stalks; 4 kaffir lime leaves; 1 tbsp lime juice; 1 tbsp soy sauce; 7 oz coconut cream ((200 ml)); 2 cups water ((470 ml)); 1 tsp salt

Usually I am not really a big fan of soup, but this vegan Thai coconut lemongrass soup I could easily eat every day. It is so flavorsome. This soup is sour, spicy, sweet and creamy all at the same time!

I actually didn’t intend on creating a recipe for a Thai soup, until my friend left some Tom Yum paste at my house. However, I did not want to make the usual Tom Yum – I wanted to create a new recipe.

And basically, this is what happened! I am very happy with how it turned out, I will definitely experiment more with making soup from now on.

You don’t have to use a Tom Yum paste, you can use any vegan Thai curry paste. Also, I wanted to use water spinach for this recipe, but since they didn’t have that at the local market I chose to use bok choy. So feel free to use whichever greens you prefer.

Ingredients

Shiitake mushrooms, 7 oz (200 g)
Tofu, 14 oz (400 g)
Rice vermicelli, 1.7 oz (50 g)
Cherry tomatoes, 20
Bok choy or water spinach
Cilantro, 2 handful
Shallots, 5
Grated ginger, 1 tbsp
Shallots, 5

Coconut oil, 3 tbsp
Thai curry paste, 1.7 oz (50 g)
Lemongrass, 3 stalks
Kaffir lime leaves, 4
Lime juice, 1 tbsp
Soy sauce, 1 tbsp
Coconut cream, 7 oz (200 ml)
Water, 2 cups (470 ml)
Salt, 1 tsp

vegan thai coconut lemongrass soup — Cut the tofu into cubes and lightly brush with coconut oil

Drain the tofu and cut it into cubes. Place them on a baking tray with baking paper and lightly brush them with coconut oil. Bake for 30 minutes on 400°F (200°C), or until the tofu has a light golden brown color.
Grate some ginger until you have 1 tablespoon of it. Chop the chili peppers and the shallots.
Heat two tablespoons of coconut oil in a frying pan. Fry the ginger, chili peppers and shallots for a few minutes on medium heat.
Take off the dry leaves of the lemongrass stalks and remove the bulb. Then, bruise the stalks. This will make the lemongrass release it’s fragrance and flavor.
Fold the kaffir lime leaves in half, and – pulling downward – tear the rib from the leaf.
Add the curry paste, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and one tablespoon of lime juice to the pan. Turn to low heat.
Slice the shiitake mushrooms, and don’t forget to take off the stems (like I did…)! Also cut the bok choy or water spinach. I used two bok choy for this recipe. I added the cherry tomatoes as a whole, but you could cut them if you prefer that.
The paste, lemongrass and lime leaves should have become really aromatic by now. Add the coconut cream and water, and also toss in the vegetables.
Also add 2 handfuls of cilantro, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce (use a gluten free soy sauce if you want to make this dish gluten free) and 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook everything on medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring every now and then.
Lastly, add the tofu and rice vermicelli. This time I used about 1.7 oz (50 grams), but this is really up to your preference. I like adding quite a bit to make it more filling, but you could definitely use less or leave it out completely.
Take out the lime leaves and lemongrass before eating, and garnish your vegan Thai coconut lemongrass soup with some chili peppers, cilantro or coconut flakes.