Simple Gourmet: Tom Kha Elk Soup

“Who’s Tom Kha?” you ask? He’s your new best friend at the Thai restaurant. You’ll find this soup at every Thai restaurant in America, and it’s delicious. It’s zingy and a little creamy and a little sour. This is probably the first time it’s been published with elk meat, but that’s only because they don’t have elk in Thailand.

It’s typically served with thinly sliced chicken breast meat, but it’d be excellent with wild turkey, pheasant, grouse, dove, pigeon, or wild boar. Simmering takes a while, but the active cooking time is ten or fifteen minutes.

I make a big batch and can the leftovers, but you could freeze it, too. Warm it on the camp stove on a rainy hunt day or in the microwave when you’ve got a cold — add a little cayenne, and clear your sinuses with its cozy creaminess.

One key is to use about the same amount of bone broth and coconut milk, but more broth is better than more coconut milk.

• 4 Cups (1 Quart) of Bone Broth
• 2 cans coconut milk, or about 4 Cups
• 1 pound or more of meat, thinly sliced (1/8″ thick)
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 8 oz fresh white mushrooms, sliced
• 3 green onions, sliced thin
• 2-3 cloves garlic, sliced (about 1 Tablespoon minced)
• 1.5 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1.5 Tablespoons lemongrass paste, or one stalk of fresh lemongrass, cut into pieces and crushed
• 2-3 teaspoons red Thai curry paste
• 2 Tablespoons fish sauce (substitute soy sauce for saltiness, but fish sauce is better)
• 3 Tablespoons lime or lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• Cooking oil

Preheat your dutch oven or other large pot. This fits in a 10-qt Dutch oven. Start by searing one side of your elk meat until it’s brown; if you use poultry, you can skip this step. If you want to use two pans, you could sear the meat in a separate pan while the soup simmers. Remove the meat from and set aside.

Use cooking oil and saute the onions. When the onions go limp, add the garlic, ginger, and curry paste and stir-fry for another two minutes. Add the bone broth and the coconut milk and blend it all together. Bring it to a simmer, then reduce the heat and simmer covered for 30 minutes — make sure it doesn’t boil over.

Use a strainer or slotted spoon to remove all the onion and garlic bits. Their flavor is in the soup, and you don’t need the limp strings. Bring the soup back to a vigorous simmer and add the meat. Cook for a few minutes until the meat is done, then add the fish sauce, lime juice, and sugar.

The fish sauce is for saltiness, and the lime and sugar will enhance the coconut flavors. Add more to taste. Add the mushrooms and green onions last, and don’t overcook them — two minutes, then reduce the heat.

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Serve your Tom Kha hot with rice, noodles, crackers, or sourdough bread. Freeze the leftovers or can them for another day.

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