Spicy Thai coconut soup is our favorite Asian comfort food: rich, creamy, spicy, and fragrant. It’s one of those dishes that announces its presence with smells that taste good enough to eat! It’s hearty enough to stand on its own, but pour it over jasmine rice and you have a real meal at the ready in minutes.
🌶️ Quick recipe snapshot
| Flavor profile | Rich coconut, sour lime and salty fish sauce, with lemongrass, lime leaf and a gentle chili warmth. |
| Primary heat source | Two red jalapeños. 2,500 to 8,000 SHU. |
| Heat level | Mild to medium. Thai chilies take it much hotter. |
| Texture | A silky, brothy soup with tender chicken, soft mushrooms and tomato. |
| Best uses | A light meal on its own, or poured over jasmine rice for something heartier. |
| Customization ideas | Thai chilies or sambal oelek for heat, shrimp or tofu in place of chicken, or more lime. |
| Before you start | About 35 minutes. Look for galangal, lemongrass and lime leaves at an Asian grocery, and use fresh ginger if you can’t find galangal. |
Flavor notes
The heat in this recipe is delivered by fresh red jalapeño, which runs 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville heat units, but you can opt for a few other directions. If you want more spiciness, try Thai peppers, and be ready, since it’s a significant upgrade. And if you have sambal oelek at hand, a couple of teaspoons gives a comparable heat to jalapeño, spread evenly through the soup.
Keep the pot at a gentle simmer once the coconut milk goes in. A hard boil can make it separate and turn grainy. And the chicken only needs 8 to 10 minutes at a low bubble anyway.
Lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves are there to flavor the broth, not to be eaten. Smash the lemongrass pieces with the side of a knife before they go in, and keep them big so they’re easy to fish out before serving.
Season at the end, off the heat. Fish sauce brings the salt and lime brings the sour, and the soup should taste bright and a little tangy against all that rich coconut. Taste after stirring them in, then adjust, because limes and fish sauce brands both vary quite a bit.
Galangal’s sharper, more citrusy taste is what the traditional version is built on. But fresh ginger still makes a good soup if that’s what you can find, just a slightly warmer, milder one.
Adaptation ideas
Most of these change the heat or the protein.
- Want more heat? Swap the jalapeños for 3 or 4 Thai chilies, smashed or sliced.
- Want an even heat? Stir 2 teaspoons of sambal oelek into the broth in place of the jalapeños.
- Want it with shrimp? Use a pound of peeled shrimp in place of the chicken, and add it for just the last 3 to 4 minutes so you don’t overcook it.
- Want it vegetarian? Use vegetable broth and cubed tofu, and swap the fish sauce for soy sauce with an extra squeeze of lime.
- Want it lighter? Use one can of coconut milk and add another cup of broth.
Serving ideas
It works as a light meal on its own or as part of a bigger spread.
- Over jasmine rice. Ladled into a bowl over a scoop of rice for a fuller meal.
- With extra lime. Wedges on the side so everyone can make it as sour as they like.
- With chili on the side. A small dish of sliced Thai chilies or sambal oelek for anyone who wants more heat.
- Next to other Thai dishes. Alongside a curry or larb as part of a shared meal.
Storage notes
Keep leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for three to four days. Pick out the lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves first if you haven’t already, since they keep steeping in the soup.
Reheat it gently over low heat and don’t let it boil, or the coconut milk can separate. A fresh squeeze of lime and a little more cilantro just before you serve it brings back the brightness.
Like this recipe? You’ll love these too:
- Hearty Tom Yum Soup: A hot and sour Thai soup with prawns, chicken, galangal and lemongrass.
- Thai Seafood Curry: Fish and prawns in a hot, sweet and sour curry sauce, served over jasmine rice.
- Larb Isaan: A bright, spicy Thai chicken salad with lime, mint and toasted rice.
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Spicy Thai Coconut Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs sliced into thin, bite-size pieces
- 2 cans coconut milk 13.5 ounces each, full-fat
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 inch piece galangal or fresh ginger, thinly sliced
- 1 stalk lemongrass bottom half only, cut into 2-inch pieces and smashed
- 4 makrut (kaffir) lime leaves torn
- 2 red jalapeño peppers seeded and diced
- 3/4 cup oyster mushrooms torn into bite-size pieces
- 2 tomatoes cut into wedges
- 1/2 red onion sliced
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce plus more to taste
- 3 tablespoons lime juice about 1 1/2 limes
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 4 scallions thinly sliced
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, combine the coconut milk, chicken broth, galangal, lemongrass and lime leaves. Bring it to a gentle simmer over medium heat, then keep it there for 10 minutes so the aromatics flavor the broth. Don’t let it boil hard, or the coconut milk can separate.
- Add the chicken, mushrooms, tomatoes, red onion and jalapeños. Simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through (165°F).
- Take the pot off the heat and stir in the fish sauce, sugar and lime juice. Taste, and add more fish sauce for salt or more lime for sourness until it tastes balanced to you.
- Pick out the lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves, which are too tough to eat. Serve topped with cilantro and scallions, on its own or over jasmine rice.
