Thai Style Coconut Carrot Soup
Feb. 1st, 2008 10:59 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snugglekittyI woke up yesterday thinking for some reason that I really needed to make coconut carrot soup. For me, the desire to cook is a sign of emotional well-being, so I decided to do it even though I am still sick. First, I reality-checked this plan by checking the internet. It seemed that people DO actually make coconut carrot soup, after all, and we had almost all of the necessary ingredients in the house, so I decided to give it a try. Special thanks to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
trouble4hire, who showed up at the perfect moment with needed scallions and got a bowl of soup for her trouble.
1 medium onion
6 medium carrots
1 t shrimp, lobster, or clam boullion
1/2 can coconut milk
2 quarts water
6 jumbo frozen shrimp
1 T unsweeted fine ground coconut
2 knobs fresh ginger
1 clove garlic
1 T lime juice
tamarind paste or pomegranate molasses to taste
dry or fresh basil to taste
olive oil
fresh scallions for garnish
Coarsely chop your onion and sautee in olive oil over low heat until brown. Meanwhile, peel and coarsely chop carrots. Deglaze the pot with seafood base. Add carrots and coconut milk. Add water as needed to keep the soup at your desired consistency - you'll need a fair amount. Add seasonings. Simmer on low until vegetables are cooked. Remove from heat. Puree. (I usually use a stick blender, but given the thin consistency of the soup, I found the upright blender to be a better choice in this case.) Bring back up to heat and add shrimp. Chop scallions. Continue cooking until the shrimp is cooked through. Serve hot with scallions on top.
Special Note for Vegetarians and Vegans: I know that I usually try to include a vegetarian/vegan substitute when I post a recipe that includes animal products. This time, it's more of a challenge than usual - the stock was pretty important, but I don't think a standard vegetable stock would work as a substitute. What makes this soup so great is that it is very creamy and flavorful, and doesn't taste like other soups. Doubling the amount of coconut milk and leaving out the dried stuff might help - definitely use fresh basil, too. Miso is another possibility. Seaweed thickener and galangal or chili pepper could work.
The shrimp primarily provides texture and visual interest, so you could easily substitute for it with jasmine rice, extra-firm tofu, or cashews, as long as you don't puree it with the rest of the soup. Let me know if you try it, okay?
This is a relatively quick soup, since it's made in a small batch. There's also not a lot of prep time. The downside is that it only makes a few servings - probably three to four as an appetizer, or two as a main dish. I was limited by what we had in the house, but it would be pretty easy to scale up.
trouble4hire, who showed up at the perfect moment with needed scallions and got a bowl of soup for her trouble.1 medium onion
6 medium carrots
1 t shrimp, lobster, or clam boullion
1/2 can coconut milk
2 quarts water
6 jumbo frozen shrimp
1 T unsweeted fine ground coconut
2 knobs fresh ginger
1 clove garlic
1 T lime juice
tamarind paste or pomegranate molasses to taste
dry or fresh basil to taste
olive oil
fresh scallions for garnish
Coarsely chop your onion and sautee in olive oil over low heat until brown. Meanwhile, peel and coarsely chop carrots. Deglaze the pot with seafood base. Add carrots and coconut milk. Add water as needed to keep the soup at your desired consistency - you'll need a fair amount. Add seasonings. Simmer on low until vegetables are cooked. Remove from heat. Puree. (I usually use a stick blender, but given the thin consistency of the soup, I found the upright blender to be a better choice in this case.) Bring back up to heat and add shrimp. Chop scallions. Continue cooking until the shrimp is cooked through. Serve hot with scallions on top.
Special Note for Vegetarians and Vegans: I know that I usually try to include a vegetarian/vegan substitute when I post a recipe that includes animal products. This time, it's more of a challenge than usual - the stock was pretty important, but I don't think a standard vegetable stock would work as a substitute. What makes this soup so great is that it is very creamy and flavorful, and doesn't taste like other soups. Doubling the amount of coconut milk and leaving out the dried stuff might help - definitely use fresh basil, too. Miso is another possibility. Seaweed thickener and galangal or chili pepper could work.
The shrimp primarily provides texture and visual interest, so you could easily substitute for it with jasmine rice, extra-firm tofu, or cashews, as long as you don't puree it with the rest of the soup. Let me know if you try it, okay?
This is a relatively quick soup, since it's made in a small batch. There's also not a lot of prep time. The downside is that it only makes a few servings - probably three to four as an appetizer, or two as a main dish. I was limited by what we had in the house, but it would be pretty easy to scale up.
