Thai Rice Soup
Thai Rice Soup basically functions like chicken noodle soup – it warms your soul and refreshes you when the days are dark and miserable and all you want is some real sunshine. Also, if you make it spicy, it will help clear your sinuses during cold season. Add to that a great way to use up leftover rice and an impossibly simple and quick recipe and you have a winning dish.
Fresh ginger and sliced chilies add heat (if you want), while cilantro and scallions lend their freshness to balance the umami broth. I added diced tofu for some protein, but you could easily sub in shrimp, chicken, or egg if you prefer. Or just leave it with the simple goodness of a rice soup. Just make it soon and you won’t regret it.
The original recipe is from our previously mentioned favorite Thai cookbook, Foolproof Thai Cooking by Ken Hom, but we’ve adapted a bit in seasoning and in what we add.
Thai Rice Soup
Serves: 4 Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
1 1/4 c. cooked rice (adjust to taste)
1/2 block of firm tofu, diced (optional)
6 c. veggie or chicken stock (I used Better than Boullion)
3 tbsp. fish sauce
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tsp. vegetable or peanut oil
3 tbsp. crushed or finely chopped garlic
Garnish:
2-3 scallions, chopped
2 tbsp. finely shredded ginger
1-2 small fresh Thai chilies (optional)
handful fresh cilantro leaves
Combine cooked rice, tofu, and stock; bring to a simmer. Add fish sauce and black pepper and simmer for 7 minutes. Meanwhile, sautee garlic in the oil in until lightly browned. Serve into soup bowls and garnish to taste with the garlic, scallions, ginger, chilies, and cilantro (the fresh ginger and the chilies both add heat; I skipped the chilies in my most recent batch because of pregnancy heartburn.) Serve immediately.
