The wonder of North Thailand- Koi Soi!
Food is memories, experiences, feeling you place on a plate. After a year and a half in Thailand, last July, in the peak of Corona, we took advantage of the quiet of the business, the open roads, and we traveled. We drove five weeks from Surat Thani to Pai and back, in the roads less traveled.
We visited the north for the first time and loved everything about it. Infinite rice fields, cooler temperatures and warm people, and the legendary Koi Soi!
Every time I make this dish, it throws me back to those few days in Mala Dhara, a small community outside Chiang Mai. To the beautiful people we met and the special time, we’ve spent together.
We’ve met in Pai a few artists who came for a music festival, and by chance, as if there’s such a thing, we all ended up a day later in the same tiny community outside Chiang Mai, Mala Dhara.
For three days, they played, we enjoyed every moment, traveled the endless green patches, and I learned how to make Koi Soi!
Rich Curry soup, with soft noodles inside and crispy noodles on top. Coconut milk creaminess, limes sourness, and the notorious Thai spiciness. Thanks to Olga from @markiv_sodi , I sat down to learn the steps to the perfect Koi Soi. And I succeeded! Prepare to fall in love.
The perfect Koi Soi!
(serves four)
Chop finely;
Small ginger root
Small turmeric root
Small Glang Glang root (can replace with a 4inch lemon grass piece finely chopped or simply not use if it’s not available)
Three coriander roots (can use the stems if they arrive rootless)
Half a cup of dried peppers seedless, softened in water, or one fresh pepper.
Add a teaspoon of cumin seeds, half a teaspoon of Kimel seeds, a https://youtu.be/PDdOwB8KKX0spoon of mushroom powder (can replace with a teaspoon salt), two spoons of curry (if available, can make up for whatever you don’t have fresh, but it’ll be great without as well).
Blend it all in a blender, or use a morter and pastle.
On a strong fire fry a bit of coconut milk while stirring until you see oil bubbles, or simply use coconut oil.
Add four spoons of the curry (the rest you can refrigerate for up to a few weeks, for other dishes or your next koi Soi).
Lower the fire and add slowly while blending;
Cocnut milk – about 400ml.
Soy spoon.
One square of chopped/crumbled Tofu (if you wish).
Any vegetables you choose; yam/potato you’ll need to cook in advance. But carrot, spinach, mushrooms, cauliflower, broccoli, bell peppers – chop and add.
Two cups of water, or less, depending how thick you want you soup and how many veggies you’ve added.
Once the veggies are ready, the soup is too!
While it’s cooking, prepare half a pack of yellow rice noodles and place them in cold water once they’re ready—Fry half of them in small batches in boiling oil until they’re golden and crispy.
Serve the soup with soft noodles inside, crunchy noodles on top, and a plate of fresh additions on the side; lime, onions, green onion, coriander.
