Coconut Lime Chicken Soup

Back to Germany, when we were there it was Oktoberfest which I was a little nervous about because the idea of it seems overwhelming but we had an amazing time.  In our first beer hall (pictures below) we meet a wonderful elderly couple whom where from Munich.  They didn't speak English that well but luckily Michael speaks some German so we were able to converse.  We ended up sitting and talking for hours, we told them we had just gotten engaged so the old man (Marcus) kept talking about life and love.  By the end we got his card which had a love poem on the back and we decided we are going to start emailing with him.  It was such a magical moment in time that I will forever treasure.  We continued to wander around Oktoberfest and saw the beautiful horses (pictured below) hauling kegs to each beer hall.  We went into 3 or 4 different beer halls and I ate some currywurst (pictured below) but the last one we went into was pretty wild.  People were up on the tables chugging entire steins and singing and dancing along.  There is a main band in every hall but in this hall the band was playing super random American music, they even played some songs from Grease (the movie).  We couldn't stop laughing it was so random, but again it was so so fun!  We wished we had more time in Germany because we wanted to go back to Oktoberfest for another full day.  Anyway here is a delicious soup that I adapted to help heal me since I've been feeling under the weather.  Perfect fall soup!

Serves 5

The Ingredients
1 15 oz can coconut milk
8 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into chunks
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 head of bok choy, chopped
3 small pieces (about 3-5 inches long) of lemongrass stalks
5 cups chicken broth
2 serrano peppers, diced
2 tsp brown sugar
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
3 tbsp fish sauce
Juice from 3 limes


The Process
1.  Spray a large pot or dutch oven with olive oil, and place over medium high heat.

2.  Using the flat side of a knife, carefully smash the lemongrass stalks a bit to release some of the flavor.

3.  Add the onion, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, and serrano peppers, and 1/4 cup of the chicken broth into the heated pot. Cook until onions begin to soften, about 5 minutes.

4.  Stir in the chicken and pour in remaining chicken broth. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to medium, cover and let simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 8-10 minutes.  Remove chicken from soup and transfer a to plate.

5.  Now stir in the lime juice, brown sugar, bok choy, fish sauce, coconut milk, and cilantro. Cook for another 4-5 minutes or until the bok choy is tender. Remove lemongrass stalks before serving.