Where does chili come from? America or Mexico? Did you know that Chili has a rich history that dates back to 1850? Well, all that is irrelevant here.
The origin of this Thai Coconut Chicken Chili is neither and only dates back to last week. I know because I was there when it was created. That’s right! We have another interracial food baby recipe.
This recipe is a cross between America’s white chili and Thailand’s Tom Kha Gai. If I can be completely honest, this was not a planned recipe. I was digging through my “zombie cabinet”* for inspiration and saw a single can of coconut milk, illuminated by a beam of white light. I would like to think that this was a sign but upon further thought I believe it was just sunlight that broke through the blinds. Doesn’t matter, I grabbed the coconut milk and set out to get the ingredients for my all time favorite soup…Tom Kha Gai.
*Zombie Cabinet: A cabinet that holds all my caned goods that also doubles as my food supply in the event that zombies are real.
I made the drive to the Asian market to discover that, they sold out of galangal, straw mushrooms and kaffir lime leaves. For those of you that have no idea why this is significant, let me give you some examples of similar situations…It’s like making…
- A Cheeseburger…without cheese
- Fried Chicken…without the breading
- A BLT…without the bacon
It just can’t be done. I walked out of the market more disappointed than that time I saw Dragon Ball: Evolution. That’s saying a lot.
I went home and proceeded to put the coconut milk back with my other zombie provisions. Then I saw the cans of northern beans. At that moment, the Thai Coconut Chicken Chili was born. You have a…
- Bowl of juicy poached chicken breast…
- Beautiful bite from the beans…
- Fragrant chicken-coconut broth…
- All infused with bold Thai flavors (Chili, Lemongrass, Ginger, Lime, Fish Sauce…)
Are you salivating yet? Have you started the search for your can opener? Yeah, I thought so!
- 1 lb Chicken Breast Cut into 1 inch cubes
- 2 15.5 oz Can Great Northern Beans
- 1 13.5 oz Can Coconut Milk
- 2 Cup Chicken Stock
- 1 tbsp Fish Sauce Plus more to taste
- 1 oz Fresh Lime Juice
- 2 inch Ginger
- 1 stalk Lemongrass
- Lime Zest from 1/2 Lime, use large strips
- 2 Bird's Eye Chili
- For the lemongrass, peel the outer layer, pound the stalk a few times and cut into 2 inch pieces (discard the top).
- Drain and rinse the beans to remove some of the starch (skip this step if you want a thicker chili).
- Bring the stock, fish sauce, lime juice, ginger, lemongrass, bird's eye chili and lime zest to a simmer.
- Simmer until stock is reduced by half, remove the ginger, lemongrass, bird's eye chili and lime zest and add the cubed chicken breast. The time for this will vary from 5-10 minutes (I used a large pan for a faster reduction time)
- Cover until the chicken shows no pink on the outside.
- In about 2-4 minutes the chicken will be cooked on the outside (still pink in the middle).
- Add in great northern beans and coconut milk, bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Done!
- Garnish and serve!
Use 8 oz coconut milk if you want a thicker chili.
The chicken will stay juicy as long as you don't boil the mixture.
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