thai-inspired coconut chicken soup

I collect ingredients like some women collect handbags and shoes. I've got authentic abuela-made mole paste on the top shelf of my fridge chilling alongside a jar of preserved lemons I picked up in Marrakech; Japanese and Chinese soy sauces sit next to eight different bottles of vinegar in my cupboard. Don't ask how many different salts I own (ten+). So of course I've got a bag of dried shrimp, spicy bean paste and nam pla just waiting to be used.

There wasn't enough chicken left over from my farmers market butchering for a solid main course - it needed to have some support. Soup, I thought! I looked in my ingredient drawer (a studio's version of a pantry) and poked around. A can of coconut milk caught my eye. Thai style coconut soup! I went to Whole Foods and picked up some fresh ingredients. An hour later, lunch was on the table.

Thai-inspired Coconut Soup
Serves 4

6 lemongrass stalks
1-1/2" piece ginger, sliced into 1/8" rounds
1 serrano chile pepper, sliced thin
2 teaspoons dried shrimp (optional but it does add a little je ne sais quoi)
1 tablespoon chile-garlic sauce
1/4 cup nam pla (fish sauce)
2 14 ounce cans light coconut milk
6 cups chicken stock
1 package (10 ounces) white mushrooms, sliced
1 chicken breast, sliced in half length-wise, then into 3/8" slices
1 chicken thigh, similarly sliced
4 ounces shrimp, tails removed, halved lengthwise
1 cup bean sprouts
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallion
juice of one lime, cut into eighths
1/4 cup cilantro leaves

Trim the end and most of the green stalk off the lemongrass. Slice down the middle and rinse, just in case there's dirt clinging. Place the lemongrass, ginger and chile pepper in some cheesecloth. Tie it up and place in medium size pot. Add the dried shrimp, chile-garlic sauce, nam pla, coconut milk, chicken stock and mushrooms. Bring to a low boil, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add chicken and simmer for an additional three minutes. Remove cheesecloth bag and press to extract as much flavor as possible. Add shrimp, bean sprouts and scallion. Turn off heat and let sit for two minutes. Stir and ladle into bowls. Sprinkle cilantro on top and serve each bowl with two lime wedges on the side. Enjoy!