Thai Lemongrass and Coconut Soup

In Thailand, soup is often served for breakfast; perhaps a comforting bowl of rice soup. Soup figures largely in traditional Thai dinners and banquets, serving as both beverage and main course (all dishes are served simultaneously, not in courses) and sometimes including two different kinds.

The soup is served and kept hot in a hot pot. While most people today serve it out in bowls, it's still not uncommon for diners to spoon it right out of the pot into their mouths or onto their rice as a flavoring.

Ingredients

2 stalks of lemongrass, white parts only, smashed 
6 kaffir lime leaves, crushed  
3 Thai bird chilies, sliced with seeds (1/16 inch, stems removed)  
2 slices fresh galangal 
2 chicken breasts, skinned, sliced into ¼ inch ribbons  or 250 g Button Mushrooms, halved or
12 large raw peeled tiger prawns
¼ cup fish sauce (optional) 
1 ltr chicken stock
1 cup of  coconut milk 
Juice of 2 limes  
Salt and Black pepper to taste
1 handful fresh coriander, a few sprigs reserved and chopped

Method

Heat oil and add the lemongrass, galangal, chilli, and garlic, in a large shallow pan. Allow to cook for a few minutes to release the aromas, stirring frequently. Add the chicken /mushrooms /prawns and stir fry lightly, for chicken cook until it begins to whiten (5 mins), for prawns cook until they turn pink and tender (2-3 mins), cook mushrooms until almost cooked.

Add the coconut milk to the pan and bring back to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes.  Add vegetable stock and bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for a few minutes. Taste soup and adjust adding splashes of Thai fish sauce, to taste.

Add lemon juice and chopped fresh coriander, to your taste. To serve, divide the drained noodles between four bowls and ladle over the aromatic soup with the chicken/prawns/mushrooms and serve.