Coconut Curry Chicken Noodle Soup

That is my pretty sister, Hannah (image via this wonderful photographer). Hannah Banana. She makes me giggle like I'm 8 years old. Born into the DeBoer family, she naturally obsesses over food also (it's in our genes) and the other day she made this delicious looking/sounding soup. Instead of just asking for the recipe, I asked her to write a guest blog. Enjoy...


I don't know where my current obsession with cooking stews/soups/chili's has come from. Perhaps it's the beautiful Le Creuset my mom bought me for Christmas? Or maybe the fact that I cook for 2 grown up boys every night and the meatier and bigger the meal, the better? Whatever caused it has made me one happy gal. There's nothing more enjoyable for me then waking up Sunday morning, drinking my coffee, throwing on some clothes and heading to the grocery store with a printed out recipe in hand. That is exactly what I did this last Superbowl Sunday. However, as most people strolled in and out of the store with 12 packs of beer and endless bags of chips, I strolled through every single aisle looking for Kaffir leaves, dark red chili paste and fish sauce.

I would suggest venturing out to your local Asian specialty store because Ralph's just didn't cut it for all of the ingredients...

Coconut Curry Chicken Noodle Soup


2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 small onion, minced
1 tbsp. minced ginger
1 tbsp. minced lemon grass
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dark red chili paste (this was not at Ralphs but I did find a curry paste w/chili that worked just fine)
3/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast or thigh (of course I opted for the already roasted chicken at Ralphs)
3 tbsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 can (14 oz.) unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 C half-and-half
4 cups chicken stock
1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
2 tbsp. fish sauce (all sold out at Ralphs...who knew fish sauce was such a hot commodity)
1 tbsp. sugar
12 kaffir lime leaves or curry leaves, fresh or frozen (someone, PLEASE tell me what this is)
8 oz. dried thin rice noodles
1 cup bean sprouts
3 tbsp. chopped cilantro for garnish

Okay yes, there are a million ingredients in this recipe but it's all worth it. Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add onion, ginger and lemon grass and cook. About 10 minutes. Add garlic and chili paste and stir until fragrant. Add chicken and stir-fry one minute. (this part didn't really apply to me because my chicken was already cooked) Add curry powder and paprika and stir to coat. Then add coconut milk, half and half, chicken stock, turmeric, fish sauce, sugar and lime or curry leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the rice noodles in boiling water according to package directions. Of course, I love noodles so I probably used about 12 oz. instead of 8 oz. This made my soup more like a pasta dish, so I just added about 1 1/2 C more chicken stock. Combine the cooked noodles with the soup and adjust seasonings with salt and sugar. I also added a touch more curry powder for more flavor. Top with bean sprouts and cilantro for garnish.

I don't mean to toot my own horn but this soup was delicious! It was something I would have ordered time and time again from a restaurant and definitely something I will make for the rest of my life. I hope you all enjoy!


Thanks Sister Face!