Thai Curry Vegetable Soup

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp neutral cooking oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
• 2 Tbsp Thai red curry paste
• 1 small sweet potato
• 1 bunch baby bok choy
• 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 13 oz can coconut milk
• 1/2 Tbsp fish sauce
• 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 3.5 oz rice vermicelli noodles
• 1/2 red onion
• 1 lime
• Handful fresh cilantro
• Sriracha to taste

Directions

1. Start with the prep, because once the soup is moving, you’ll want everything within reach. Finely chop the garlic, then grate the ginger on the small holes of a cheese grater. Peel the sweet potato and cut it into 1-inch cubes. Rinse the bok choy thoroughly, slice it into 1-inch pieces, and keep the sturdy stems separate from the tender green tops. Cut the red onion into thin slices and give the cilantro a rough chop.
2. Pour the cooking oil into a large soup pot, then add the garlic, ginger, and Thai red curry paste. Cook them over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, stirring, until the aromatics wake up a bit.
3. Stir in the sweet potato cubes and the chopped bok choy stems, keeping the green tops out for now, then pour in the chicken or vegetable broth. Let the soup come up to a boil over medium-high heat, lower the burner to low, and simmer for 5-7 minutes, until the sweet potato is tender.
4. As that simmers, set a small pot of water over heat for the vermicelli and let it boil. Add the vermicelli to the bubbling water and cook for 2-3 minutes, stopping when the noodles are just tender. Drain them in a colander and keep them aside.
5. When the sweet potato is tender, stir the coconut milk, fish sauce, and brown sugar into the pot. Taste the broth, then balance it with more fish sauce or brown sugar if it needs it. Add the bok choy greens last and let the heat of the soup soften them.
6. For serving, portion the rice vermicelli into 4 bowls. Spoon the soup and vegetables on top, then finish each bowl with red onion, cilantro, a lime wedge or 2, and sriracha.