I firmly believe that Khao Soi should be ranked as one of the world's great dishes. You can call it a curry or you can call it a noodle soup and it is both of those with more on top, literally on top! A broth of aromatic curry paste and orange-tinged coconut milk with tender chicken falling apart for you, boiled noodles lurking underneath and becoming coated with fragrant oil as they break the surface. Crispy noodles on top you can manipulate and dunk into the sauce. And then as if that wasn't enough you get to add accompaniments of your choice, raw shallots, pickled cucumbers or mustard greens, peanuts, and halved hard-boiled eggs are just some of the additions that can embellish this dish. And let's not forget the chilli oil paste that enables diners to spice the dish, or not, to their heart's content. Beyond question, most at home in Chiang Mai, this is a dish that has been travelling the trade routes from southern China through Laos and Myanmar for centuries. These days many travellers spend a considerable portion of their time in Chiang Mai checking out the various eating places famed for this dish; it's that good. The recipe might look long but more than anything that is because I am covering it in detail, the longest and hardest part by far has already been done for you in the making of the curry paste. Apart from that, it's a little preparation and a short cooking time. A spectacular dish to serve to guests with almost everything capable of being prepared a day or so before, in fact as with most curries it will taste even better if cooked the day before. Let's go!
The images below show the ingredients and how I prepped them, this should make 4 servings. Note, I use fresh egg tagliatelle or linguini as they work better than the egg noodles available in the UK.
Ingredients.
1 Packet My Thai Curry Yellow Curry Paste
1 can of Coconut Milk, check the link for info.
1 Kg chicken drumsticks or boneless thighs if you prefer.
1 packet Fresh Egg Tagliatelle or Linguini.
3-4 Pickled Cucumbers
1 tbsp Thai Fish Sauce
1 tbsp Sugar
2 medium Red Onion
2 Garlic cloves
1 Lime
Cooking oil for frying
400ml water.
Optional Coriander, Spring Onion for garnish.
Chilli oil (I used Chiu Chow Chilli Oil from Sainsbury’s.) This is pretty hot so can be omitted if you prefer a less spicy eating experience.
Prepped Ingredients.
Slice the chicken drumsticks through to the bone.
Marinate the chicken with all of the contents of the Yellow Curry paste pouch, working it well into the chicken. Leave it to marinate in the fridge overnight if at all possible.
The fried noodles or tagliatelle can be fried the day before and reserved. Use half the packet (250g) and save the remainder for boiling later. Add enough cooking oil to a wok or deep pan to cover the noodles when you add them. Heat to around 150°C. Add the noodles or tagliatelle in batches for no more than 90 seconds and drain on kitchen paper. You are aiming for a crisp, golden brown, bubbly noodle as in the image below.
Sauté the garlic, onions or shallots, in a little oil for two or three minutes and then remove.
Add the marinated chicken to the pan and then cook for around 10 minutes over medium heat, turning occasionally until the chicken is nicely browned.
Return the onions to the pan and add the coconut milk.
Stir, and add the water, the fish sauce, and sugar, and stir again.
Cover the pan and simmer over low heat for around 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, add the noodles or tagliatelle that are to be boiled to a pan of boiling water and cook them according to the packet instructions, normally around 2 to 3 minutes, drain, and reserve.
Almost there. An authentic Khao Soi should always have a layer of oil floating on the top ready to coat the noodles as they emerge from the broth!
You're done! Now watch the video below to see how to put this together. I have a confession to make, I broke the noodles into small pieces at the end to make for easier filming. It had been a long day and there was a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc in the fridge that was calling my name ever louder and I could take no more. If I was serving this to my guests I would certainly leave the noodles intact as in the picture both for the visual effect and to let them have the pleasure of working out how to go about eating them. The truth is that this can be a somewhat messy eating experience even for Thais, remember I said it was a great dish, not an elegant one but just total yumminess! Enjoy:-)
Can’t wait to try this one, one of my favourite dishes from Thailand. And thanks for the tagliatelle tip – it’s endlessly frustrating to have such bad noodles in the UK
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John
August 07, 2023
Fantastic dish, every mouthful has a different taste/texture. Will definitely be cooking again