Ginger, Chicken, And Coconut Soup

I stumbled upon a recipe for Tom Ka Gai (Ginger, Chicken, And Coconut Soup) in one of my Asian cookbooks tonight, and drooled over it for about five minutes before it occurred to me that I had most of the ingredients to make it for dinner tonight. Lacking some of the specialty ingredients, and the nearest Asian store being fifty minutes away, I came up with some fair substitutions…and they work!

Ginger, Chicken, And Coconut Soup

(Tom Ka Gai...er, sort of)

You will need:
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 can light coconut milk
1 cup milk (skim works just fine)
1inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
10 black peppercorns, crushed
2 teaspoons grated lemon or lime zest
1 cup skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into thin strips
1 cup mushrooms, thinly chopped
1/2 cup corn, thawed if frozen
1 green chilli pepper, seeded and finely chopped
4 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
chopped green onions, and cilantro for garnish

Combine broth, milk, and coconut milk in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add lemon or lime zest, ginger, and peppercorns and lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Then add chicken, mushrooms, corn, chopped chilli peppers, and simmer for 5 - 7 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in lime juice, and fish sauce. Serve hot garnished with chopped green onions, and cilantro. Enjoy!