Thai Curry Coconut Soup

Thai Curry Coconut Soup

Ingredients
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp chili oil
• 2-3 tbsp red curry paste ( hot or mild)
• 2-3 tbsp frest grated ginger
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Zest of 1 lime
• Juice of 1 lime
• 4 cups chicken broth *
• 3 tbsp of fish sauce
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 3 cans ( 13-14 oz each) coconut milk
• ½ pound shitake or button mushrooms
• 1 lb medium peel shrimp
• ½ lb thinly sliced chicken breast
• ¼ cup chopped basil *
• Salt & pepper to taste

*broth – I use chicken but if you want to go vegetarian try veg. broth.
* basil – I love it with this; but feel free to use cilantro- equally as tasty
*lemon zest- you can use lemon grass or lemon verbena if you have it
* use shrimp only if you want veggie style
Preparation
Heat oil in pan, add curry paste, ginger and lemon zest. Cook for about 2-3minutes. Add chili oil, fish sauce and brown sugar. Cook approx.. 1 minutes. Add chicken broth ( or veg broth). Simmer for 15 minutes (stirring or using whisk occasionally). Add coconut milk, lime juice and lime zest, bring to simmer ( make sure to shake coconut milk – it settles in the can), add mushrooms – let them cook down. Add shrimp and/or chicken. Takes about 5- 8 minutes for them to be fully cooked. Add some freshly chopped basil to pot and garnish each bowl with fresh basil. Use cilantro if you prefer.
Can be Vegetarian if you like