Malaysian soup
This is one of the first local dishes I tried when I moved to Malaysia. It takes time to complete all the steps for making the soup, but once all is done it is an ideal dish when having guests over. Just keep the heat on low for the curry broth and let the guests make their own laksa.
Enjoy!
curry laksa
2-3 portions
Ingredients
Soup:
1 tbsp peanut oil
2-3 tbsp Laksa paste (see below)
600ml chicken broth (see below)
400ml coconut milk
Laksa paste:
8-10 dried, long, red chili, soaked in hot water for 15-20 min, then chopped
1 tsp coriander seeds, dry roasted
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 medium onion, chopped
4 lemongrass, only the white part, chopped
30g galangal, chopped (although not similar, substitute with ginger)
3 big garlic cloves, grated
6 tbsp peanut oil
2 tsp shrimp paste (I don’t use it, as I don’t like the taste)
Chicken broth:
3 pieces chicken drumsticks
800ml water
salt to taste
Per portion:
50-80g rice or wheat flour noodles, like rice vermicelli or ramen noodles, cooked according to the package instructions
60-80g shredded, cooked chicken meat
4-6 green beans, 8-10cm cut lengthwise, half cooked
half egg, medium or hard boiled
1-2 tofu puffs, cut into half (see tips&cheats)
50g soybean sprouts
coriander leaves
½ lime
fried onions
To serve: chili sauce, fried onions, dry roasted and chopped peanuts
Method
Make the laksa paste: Blitz all ingredients listed above. Keep 2-3 tbsp for the laksa soup and refrigerate the rest.
Make the chicken broth: Cook the chicken and let it cool, then discard the skin and bones and shred the meat. Use the shredded meat and the broth for the laksa soup.
In a pot, heat the oil and stir fry laksa paste for 1-2 minutes. Add the broth and coconut milk and simmer for 5 minutes on a medium heat, then strain the soup.
Assemble the soup: in a bowl put the cooked noodles and cover with curry broth, then add toppings: chicken, green beans, egg, tofu puffs, soybean sprouts, coriander leaves, peanuts or onions. Drizzle with chili sauce if you want it spicier, and squeeze the juice of the lime into the soup for a sour taste.
Tips & cheats
Tofu puffs are easy to find in Malaysia, but not in my hometown in Romania and whenever I’m there I try to make my own. Press a tofu block to squeeze out the liquid, then cut it into cubes, roll them in cornstarch and deep fry them.
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