Malaysian Laksa Soup
One of the best parts of Expat life is the chance to exchange recipes from people who have lived in far away lands and have an amazing recipe collection. When I was living in Azerbaijan, I organized an Expat recipe book as a school fundraiser. I got a lot of great, unusual recipes. I don’t really make the one that starts with slicing the chicken’s neck and hanging it to drain the blood, then using the blood to make stew, but there were some other amazing recipes in there. I’m not sure how this recipe got into my collection, but it is very good and you can add shredded chicken if you like. It can be very spicy with the addition of hot chilies, but has a depth of flavor and spice from lemongrass, lime leaves and creamy coconut milk. It is a meal in itself, but I like to serve it with Fresh Spring Rolls for a real mingling of Asian flavors.
Malaysian Laksa Soup
Prep
Cook
Total
You can add shredded chicken to this soup or use leftover rice instead of cooking the rice with the soup.
Ingredients
- 6-8 fresh Lime Leaves or 4 dried
- 1-3 Chilies-depending on how hot you like
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 2 inch piece of Ginger, peeled and chopped
- 3 sticks Lemongrass, tough outer skin removed, chopped
- 1 large bunch Cilantro, chopped
- 1 teaspoon Chinese Five Spice Powder
- 1 teaspoon Cumin
- 1 large Onion, chopped
- 1 Butternut Squash, peeled and cut into bite size
- 4-6 cups Vegetable Stock
- 1 cup Basmati Rice (or cooked leftover rice)
- 2 cans Coconut Milk
- 2 Limes
- Sea Salt to taste
- Shredded Cooked Chicken (optional)
Instructions
- Put all the Spices into a food processor and chop until fine
- Saute the Onion in a splash of Olive Oil in a large soup pot until soft
- Add the Spice Mixture and sauté 5 min over low heat
- Add the Squash and stir and cook 10 minutes
- Add 4 cups stock, bring to a boil and stir in Rice
- Reduce to simmer, cover and cook 15 minutes
- Add the Coconut Milk, more stock if necessary and salt to taste, heat gently
- Stir in Lime juice or serve with a lime slice
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