Khao piak sen
This Laotian noodle soup is made from complex broth full of traditional Southeast Asian flavours such as lemon grass and lime leaves.
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 1 Onion
- 5 cloves garlic, sliced
- 3 cm ginger, sliced
- 3 cm galangal, sliced optional
- 2 stalks lemon grass
- 5 lime leaves
- 1-2 red chilies to desired spice level
- 1-2 green chilies
- 3 tbsp oil, e.g. canola
- 10 stalks fresh coriander
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 sheet sea weed optional
- 5 dried mushrooms optional
- 1 tbsp vegetable stock powder or 1 cube
- 1 Lime, juice from
- 300 g rice noodles
Instructions
- Soak the mushrooms in boiling water for 10-15 min.
- Optional: cut onion into quarters and char in a hot cat iron pan without oil. Also char half of the ginger. This adds some complexity to the broth
- Coarsely chop the onion.
- Cut the lemon grass and crush it in a mortar.
- tear the leaves from the coriander stalks
- Heat the oil to a high temperature in a pot and fry the onion. Add garlic at the end. See note.
- Add all other ingredients except coriander leaves, noodles and water. Stir until heated through.
- Add 1 L water and stock cube/powder as well as the mushrooms with their soaking liquid.
- Simmer for 20-30 minutes.
- When stock has simmered, add the noodles and cook until they are ready.
- Finish the soup with fresh lime juice and the reserved coriander leaves.
Notes
Frying the onion: Khao piak sen is often made with deep fried onion and garlic oil. Frying at high temperature and then cooking in the oil mimics this tradition while saving some time.