Canned Coconut Milk Is The Thai-Inspired Upgrade Your Chicken Soup Needs

Chicken soup is comfort in a bowl — a simple and traditional go-to when you want something warm and nourishing on a cold day or are feeling a little under the weather. But that cozy familiarity can also make it feel a bit run-of-the-mill. One way to liven up chicken soup is with canned coconut milk, drawing flavorful inspiration from Thai cooking.

Coconut milk adds a rich creaminess and mild tropical flavor to your favorite chicken soup recipe, offering a nod to tom kha gai, the popular Thai coconut chicken soup. Use a standard 13.5-ounce can, or experiment with more or less depending on how coconut-forward and creamy you'd like the soup to be. Keep in mind, coconut milk d oesn't do well at high temperatures or when heated for too long, as it tends to curdle. To avoid this, add it towards the end of cooking and pour it in slowly, stirring continuously.

When you open the can, you may notice that the coconut milk has separated, with cream on top and watery liquid below. This is normal and doesn't mean the coconut milk has gone bad — just stir it together before using. Be sure to choose unsweetened, full-fat coconut milk, not coconut cream, which has a thicker consistency and is generally used in desserts. Additionally, avoid syrupy c ream of coconut, as it's heavily processed and sweetened.

Using coconut milk in your chicken soup will be delicious on its own, but you could also try incorporating more Thai elements like those in tom kha gai. Coconut milk balances and enhances the aromatic seasonings, and including at least some of them in your soup will create an even bigger Asian flavor upgrade.

Key Thai ingredients in tom kha gai besides coconut milk include citrusy lemongrass, savory fish sauce, a spice called galangal, and makrut lime leaves. Galangal is a peppery and woodsy underground stem that looks similar to ginger, and makrut lime leaves have a citrusy and floral taste. You'll likely have to go to an Asian market for these ingredients, but you could still bring Thai flavor with easier substitutes like f resh ginger instead of galangal, regular lime zest and/or juice in place of makrut lime leaves, and lemon zest and/or juice as a lemongrass substitute.

Simmer these aromatics in the soup to let their flavors infuse the liquid. Alternatively, lightly brown the lemongrass, galangal (or ginger), and other aromatics — such as onion and garlic — in oil for a couple of minutes before incorporating them into the broth.