Khao Soi Coconut Curry With Crispy Noodles Recipe

• 4 chicken thighs
• 5 large dried chillies (deseeded)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1/4 cup ginger
• 1/4 cup chopped shallots
• 1/2 tbsp chopped turmeric
• 1/2 tbsp black cardamom pods
  
• 1 tbsp chopped coriander stalks
• 1/4 tbsp curry powder
• 100g dried egg noodles
  
• 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
  
• 1 1/2 cups coconut cream (scoop from top of can of coconut milk)
• 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
  
• 1/2 tbsp dark sweet soy sauce
  

Special Cooking Equipment Used

• mortar and pestle
  
• pot with lid
  

Cooking instructions

Step 1: First we need to make our curry paste. Start by gently dry frying 5 large deseeded dried chillies, 1 tbsp of coriander seeds, 1/2 tbsp black cardamom seeds, 1/4 cup chopped ginger, 1/4 cup chopped shallots, 1 tbsp chopped coriander stalks, and 1/2 tbsp chopped turmeric. We are just doing this to release the aroma of these ingredients.

Step 2: Add all of the ingredients we just dry fried to a deep mortar and pestle, and crush them until everything is broken down. Now add 1/4 tbsp of curry powder, and mix into the paste.

Step 3: Now add about 2 tbsp of the coconut cream to a pot, and heat on a high heat. Once it begins frying, add the paste we made earlier, and stir fry in the coconut cream.

Step 4: Once the paste and the coconut cream have been mixed together thoroughly, add the rest of the 1 1/2 cups of coconut cream to the pot, lower the heat, and mix thoroughly.

Step 5: Now add 4 chicken thighs to the pot, and stir, ensuring that the chicken thighs get completely covered in the cream mixture. Pour in 1 1/2 cups of coconut milk, and stir, then add 1 1/2 tbsp of dark soy sauce and 1 1/2 tbsp of light soy sauce. Mix everything and then cover the pot, and let the chicken and cream simmer on a low heat for about 45 minutes.

Step 6: Whilst the chicken is cooking, we can prepare our noodles. Bring a saucepan of water to the boil, and add 1 portion (about 50g) of dried egg noodles to the water. We will cook each portion of noodles separately to stop them getting tangled up together. Let the noodles boil for about 5 minutes or until they are cooked, and then drain and set aside. Repeat for the other portion of noodles.

Step 7: Now deep fry the noodles (making sure they have been thoroughly drained of water first!). We need to deep fry each portion separately until they are crispy and light brown, which should only take about 5 minutes. Once ready, shake off the excess oil, and set aside on some paper towel to absorb and left over oil.

Step 8: Once the chicken has been simmering in the cream for 45 minutes, it is time to serve! Place the crispy noodles in a bowl, and then spoon on the curry. Garnish with lime, spring onion, coriander and shallots, and enjoy!