Vegan Tom Kha Soup Recipe

Hey there! Today I got a special one for you: My interpretation of a delicious vegan Tom Kha soup. It’s such a treat. This Tom Kha is fresh, fragrant, and full of coconut flavour. The soup itself is creamy but has a fantastic texture from thinly sliced button mushrooms to it. The flavour is so exotic, eating this dish feels like a small vacation. But it also makes me want to pack my bags and head to Thailand! While this is no traditional Tom Kha soup, it is a little spin that I love to make. It is the perfect soup for a warm day! 

Ingredients for the Tom Kha: 

• Coconut oil
• Coconut cream
• Button Mushrooms: 
• Fresh Lemon Grass 
• Kaffir Lime Leaves
• Red Chilli / Thai Chilli
• Galangal / Fresh Ginger 
• Garlic 
• Lime
• Coconut Sugar
• Vegetable Stock 
• Coriander 
• Salt
• Optional: Scallion for garnish

As you might already notice from the list of ingredients, there are some spins on this Tom Kha recipe. I am using button mushrooms, which give a delicious texture and depth of flavour. While Tofu also works great for a vegan Tom Kha, I am a big fan of the mushrooms! 

Also, Tom Kha translates to cooked galangal, which is Thai ginger. In traditional Tom Kha soups, galangal is the base ingredient. For this adaption, we substitute the galangal with common ginger, as it can be tough to find galangal here in Europe. Galangal has a stronger, more citrusy flavour than ginger. Thus, I balance the flavour by adding more lime juice and kaffir lime leaves than I would if using galangal. 

Vegan Tom Kha Soup Recipe: 

Firstly, we want to build a fragrant flavour base for our soup. For that, let’s prepare the aromatics. Take the seeds out of the red chilli and slice it finely, and grate your ginger and garlic into fine bits. I am using a Microplane for this process. Reserve a bit of chilli to garnish the soup. Next, put your soup pot on medium heat, add coconut oil, and allow it to melt.

While our pot is heating up, we can prepare some vegetable stock. You won’t need much for this recipe. But it is good to have some on hand if you want to thin the soup further. I like to make my vegetable stock customized to this soup. It’s super easy and quick to make, so I’d recommend trying it out! I am using a few basic stock vegetables like an onion, garlic, and a carrot. Specifically for this recipe, I add spring onion, a few slices of ginger, and two kafir lime leaves. You can find more details on how to make delicious vegetable stock here. 

How to make the Tom Kha Soup:

While the stock starts simmering, add the ginger, garlic, and chilli to the coconut oil. Sauté for three minutes while stirring frequently. Then, deglaze the pot by adding your coconut cream, and bring it to a gentle simmer. Crush your fresh lemongrass, and add it with the kaffir lime leaves to the soup. Add the lime juice too. Allow to simmer gently and infuse with flavour for 15 minutes. 

While the soup is infusing, I like to prepare the button mushrooms. Slice them as thin as possible. I am using a mandoline for this process, which ensures that all slices are of equal thickness. Add them just a minute before serving, so the mushrooms preserve their crunch! 

When your Tom Kha has infused with all that delicious flavour, I take out the kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass. Now it’s time for the final adjustments to the soup. First, check how you like the heaviness and consistency of the soup. I like to add around a cup of vegetable stock to keep the soup a bit lighter and thinner. Add salt and coconut sugar, and check for seasoning. 

With the soup ready, I like to prepare some garnishes before plating. For that, I sliced some more chilli and scallion and reserved a few cilantro leaves. 

Now, strip off the remaining cilantro leaves, and add them, together with the button mushrooms, to the Tom Kha soup. Stir to incorporate the ingredients, and plate it right after.

Garnish it with the chilli, cilantro, and spring onion, and enjoy! 

I hope you enjoyed this vegan Tom Kha soup recipe. Let me know what you think! 

Some more Recipe Inspirations:

• Do you like Vietnamese cuisine as well? These vegan Banh Mi sandwiches might be something for you!
• This vegan Pad Thai is incredibly tasty!
• Talking about soups: This delicious peppery parsnip soup is a fantastic way to enjoy this classic german root vegetable! 
• Roasted garlic soup is so fragrant and delicious.
• Red beet soup looks vibrant and tastes amazing!
• Vegan Vichyssoise is a great refreshing starter for a hot summer days.