Hello lovelies, finally I have a recipe for you that I have been promising you for quite a while. It’s the vegan Tom Kha Gai with tofu. Meanwhile we have tried this recipe 3 times and it tastes so good. After I made some adjustments, I can now finally share it with you. Asian food is very popular in our family, the kids could eat Asian noodles daily and Papa Frei and I love the diverse meals this cuisine has to offer. Also because we love to travel to this part of the world.
Especially when it comes to **Tom Kha Gai **I’m always happy to find a vegan version in restaurants, but it doesn’t happen that often. You should always reinsure yourself it’s actually vegan. It’s often forgotten that FISH sauce isn’t vegan (but yeah, it’s not obvious right away :-). It’s better to make your own soup because luckily there is a delicious vegan version of fish sauce, e.g. this one here. You can either order it online or find it in a well sorted organic food shop (this is the case for me).
Tom Kha Gai
It’s actually not really correct to say Tom Kha Gai in this recipe, because “Gai” means chicken. It’s rather a Tom Kha Tofu, but this sounds a little weird:
*The Thai word tom (ต้ม) means "cooked", kha (ข่า) means "galangal" and kai (ไก่) means "chicken". The Thai word for "chicken" begins with an unkempt 'k', which in the perception of many German and English native speakers resembles a 'g' rather than a gushed 'k', which is why it is often transcribed as gai. *Source: Wikipedia
As you can see in the description above, another important ingredient of the soup is galangal, also called Thai ginger. This tastes really different than ginger and cannot be replaced by this in the recipe. However, you will get "Asia kits" in most supermarkets, where you will find galangal and lemongrass, chili, kaffir lime leaves as well as matching vegetables. This is really helpful if you don’t have an Asia shop nearby where you can buy the spices individually.
Recipe
Vegan Tom Kha Gai with tofu
A delicious vegan Tom Kha Gai with tofu and glass noodles, which tastes almost as good as in a Thai restaurant.
Tofu:
- 200 gr 7 oz. tofu (solid)
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Pepper
- 2 Tbsp sesame oil
Soup:
- 2 stems lemongrass
- 3-4 cm 2“ galangal
- 4 kaffir lime leaves
- 600 ml 2.5 cups coconut milk (full-fat)
- 200 ml 3/4 cup vegetable broth
- 3 Tbsp vegan fish sauce
- Vegetables like okra (corncob, edamame)
- Pinch of cane sugar
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- 1 pack of glass noodles (100 gr/3.5 oz.)
- sesame
- fresh cilantro
- Chili (lime for decoration)
Tofu:
- Dry the tofu a little and dice it
- Mix with all herbs and roast all sides crispy in sesame oil
- Cook the glass noodles according to the packet instructions and place them aside
Soup:
- Slice the lemongrass and smash it a little using a knife
- Slice the galangal
- Put 400 ml (1 ½ cups) coconut milk, vegetable broth, lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, chili (as much as you like) and 2 Tbsp fish sauce in a pot
- Let it boil and then simmer at low heat for 5-10 minutes
- Dice the vegetables, add them and let simmer for an additional 5 minutes until the vegetables are soft
- Now add the remaining coconut milk and season with lime juice, sugar and fish sauce
- Add glass noodles and tofu to the soup
- Serve it in bowls and decorate it with sesame, fresh chili, cilantro and limes
The spices such as galangal, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves are not eaten with this soup. Simply leave them in the pot or point them out while serving.
This soup is so delicious and fresh and immediately puts you in a holiday mood. I’m well aware that the original version doesn’t contain glass noodles, but they match perfectly and the kids and Papa Frei love them very much. Furthermore you can serve it as a main course like this. But of course you can leave the glass noodles out.
Do you like Asian food? You should also try our wok noodles, you can find the recipe here. This is our standard meal when we’re in a hurry. But it’s still healthy as it contains lots of vegetables.
If you love creamy Asian soups, you will probably also fall for my red curry soup with coconut tofu - it plays in the same flavour league as this tom kha gai. And on cold days, my hearty vegan umami ramen will warm you right through.
Love, Verena
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