Thursday, July 3, 2014

Thai Coconut Shrimp Soup (Meal Plan)


One of our favorite restaurants nearby is a little Thai restaurant, where the food is always fresh and delicious, and the service is attentive and friendly.

My personal favorite on the menu is Red Chicken Curry with Bamboo Shoots, but no matter what I order, I have to start with a bowl of their signature soup - either Tom Yum Gai (a chicken and lemongrass soup with mushrooms) or Tom Kha Gai which is similar but includes coconut milk.

I've never gotten around to trying to make either myself, and finally decided it was time - using shrimp instead of chicken because I happened to have some, but I will definitely be doing  this again with chicken for a cost effective and soul satisfying meal.  And just as a side note - the lemony ginger broth makes for an amazing cold treatment when you've got a stuffy head.

For this time, I served the soup over some steamed rice - this is entirely optional!  We rarely eat grains, but I was in the mood for some rice, and wanted a more substantial dish.  If you're having the soup alone, you probably want something else on the side, like a good salad, to round things out.

Note: I originally labeled this Shrimp Tom Kha Gai Soup. I got an immediate and welcome correction - Tom Kha Gai is chicken. Gai = Chicken.  Since this uses Shrimp, it's Tom Kha Goong.  And, after a bit of further exploration, I think purists may also say it isn't that either, because Kha = galagel, and I'm not using any here.

So.. let's just call it Thai Coconut Shrimp Soup - no matter what the name, it's delicious!

Thai Coconut Shrimp Soup

20 ounce chicken or fish broth (I used homemade chicken broth)
1 can whole coconut milk
1" fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 stalk of lemongrass, out portion peeled, inner finely diced
1 T. lime juice
1 T. fish sauce
1 T. Thai chile sauce (or more, to taste)
1 lb. shrimp, thawed and shelled
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 fresh jalapeno, seeded and thin sliced longwise
1/2 cup combined chopped fresh basil and cilantro

In a soup pot, combine broth, ginger and lemongrass and bring to a boil.

Lower heat to simmer, add coconut milk and blend well. Stir in lime juice, fish sauce and Thai chile sauce. Add shrimp, mushrooms, and jalapeno slices, and let simmer until vegetables are tender and shrimp is cooked through, approximately 10-15 minutes.

To serve, put 1/2 cup of rice in a bowl (if using), and ladle soup over the top.  Sprinkle with a handful of fresh basil and cilantro.  If desired, a bit of Siracha will add some heat to the bowl.

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This week's produce haul is quite nice! In our weekly box, we got some rainbow chard and kale, a head of cabbage, some more basil, a head of Romaine lettuce, a cucumber, a pint of blueberries and some peaches.  Additionally, I ordered some zucchini, broccoli, sweet potatoes, an onion, a couple oranges and a lemon, some bananas, kiwi and a watermelon.  I think we'll be eating well this week!

Here's the plan:

Thursday July 3
Broccoli
Zucchini Noodles

Pre-prep:
Hard cook eggs for tomorrow.  Reserve a couple for the main dish salad later in the week.


Friday July 4 
INDEPENDENCE DAY
Bratwursts
Cole Slaw
Deviled Eggs
Watermelon Feta Salad with Basil


Saturday July 5
Breakfast Dinner:
No Grain Blueberry Waffles
Bacon or Sausage
Sweet Potato Hash Browns

Pre-prep:
Roast Beets for Salad tomorrow
Take down brisket for Monday

Sunday July 6
 Spending Day in BALTIMORE
Main Dish Salad
Or Eat Out
(if eating out, push everything back a day)

Pre-Prep:
put together sauce and brisket for tomorrow.

Monday July 7 
Doctor Appointments
Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Greens

Roasted Peaches &  Thickened Yogurt for Dessert

Tuesday July 8
TRIVIA NIGHT
Leftovers or Eating Out

Wednesday July 9 
Michael home late
Kielbasa and Veggie Stir-Fry
(open ended - use up any produce that needs to be cooked)


What are your meal plans for this week? Are you doing anything special this weekend?  I'd love to hear in comments - the more ideas, the merrier!



Crafting Along


Do Tell Tuesday on Diane's Vintage Zest!

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21 comments:

  1. This soup looks delicious! Thanks for sharing!
    Have a fabulous day!
    Hugs from Portugal,
    Ana Love Craft
    www.lovecraft2012.blogspot.com

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  2. That soup looks amazing! My husband is going to love this recipe! I can't wait to try it!

    your blog name

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  3. Love coconut milk in soups...pinned!

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  4. Your meal plan looks great and we would just love your soup! Hope you have a great week and thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
    Come Back Soon!
    Miz Helen

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  5. Looks delicious! Thank you for linking with Home Sweet Home!

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  6. This looks great and something I'd love to make! I love those flavors, pinning! Now following you on FB, enjoy your day. :)

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  7. Just delicious, I love Thai food and shrimp, Win win!

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  8. This looks delicious, thanks for sharing at the #WWDParty.

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  9. Sounds like a delicious combination of ingredients and simple to make. Pinned.

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  10. Oh my, looks delicious! Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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  11. Wow that looks utterly delightful, so flavoursome and healthy too! Love it! Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays

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  12. Love your yummy recipe! Thank you for sharing at CAL link party :)

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  13. Wow, that looks so tasty. I can't wait to try it myself. Thank you for linking at the In and Out of the Kitchen Link Party. Hope to see you again next week.

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  14. Thank you so much for sharing your creativity on The Inspiration Board at homework. I can't tell you how happy I am that you stopped by to share. You were featured in the spotlight today!
    Have a wonderful weekend!
    carolyn ~ homework

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  15. We love shrimp in our household. This looks so tasty! Thanks for sharing on Sunday FUNday!

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  16. Thank you for sharing this post at City of Creative Dream's City of Links on Friday! I appreciate you taking the time to party with me. Hope to see you again this week :)

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  17. This sounds so good, I love all of these flavors. Thank you for sharing. Hello from Wellness Wednesday.

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  18. Congrats! You are featured on this week's Do Tell Tuesday link party and have been pinned to our features board! Feel free to grab a button and link up this week too. :) http://www.vintagezest.com/2014/07/do-tell-tuesday-32.html

    Diane @ Vintage Zest

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  19. What an interesting combination of flavors. I'll bet it is delicious! Thank you for sharing at What We Accomplished Wednesdays. Have a great week!

    Blessings,
    Deborah

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  20. I would really enjoy this soup. It is something totally different from what I usually make and what a treat it would be.
    twinkle at optonline dot net

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