The subtle blend of sweet, creamy, and sharp flavors in this Thai classic makes it one of the first Thai dishes most people learn to love. Although the best version I ever had began with cracking real coconuts—a chore I wouldn’t wish on an enemy—if you make coconut milk from dried coconut or use canned coconut milk, the dish is easy to re-create at home and really great. For information on Thai fish sauce (nam pla), see page 500.

　　

Ingredients

makes 4 servings

　　1 quart coconut milk, homemade (page 584) or canned

　　1 cup chicken stock, preferably homemade (page 160)

　　1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast or thigh, cut into 1-inch strips

　　3 lemongrass stalks, trimmed, smashed, and cut into 2-inch lengths (page 143)

　　10 nickel-sized slices of fresh ginger

　　2 fresh chiles, preferably Thai, stemmed, seeded, and minced, or hot red pepper flakes to taste

　　4 lime leaves, preferably fresh, roughly chopped

　　1 cup sliced button mushrooms or drained canned straw mushrooms

　　3 tablespoons nam pla

　　3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

　　1 teaspoon sugar

　　Salt and black pepper to taste

　　1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves, optional

　　

Step 1

Combine the coconut milk and stock in a large saucepan, turn the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat a bit, add the chicken pieces, and simmer until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and set aside.

　　

Step 2

Add the lemongrass, ginger, chiles, and lime leaves; simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the larger pieces of spices with a slotted spoon. Return the chicken to the saucepan along with the mushrooms and heat through, about 3 minutes. (You can prepare the dish up to this point and let sit for a few hours or cover and refrigerate for up to a day before reheating and proceeding.) Turn off the heat and stir in the nam pla, lime juice, and sugar. Season with salt and pepper, garnish with the cilantro if desired, and serve.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.