Thai Coconut-Curry CHicken Noodle Soup

I love Thai food but our area seems to lack a good place to eat out, so I was thrilled when I found this recipe! Easy and delicious! I altered a few things from the original and would actually prefer the soup with tofu rather than chicken, but overall this is a warm, flavorful soup. This entire soup from start to finish takes less than an hour, so don't be overwhelmed by the long list of ingredients. The recipe is not as difficult as it may first appear - it is actually pretty simple.

Thai Coconut-Curry Chicken Noodle Soup

5 cups water
7 -8 oz pad thai noodles, broken in half or quarters (makes eating them easier once in the bowl!)
1 TBS olive oil
1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots (use onion if shallots are not available)
1/2 small orange habanero chili, seeded and chopped
1 small hot red chili, seeded and chopped
1 - 2 TBS Green Curry paste
1 1/2 tsp curry powder (I used closer to 1 tsp to lessen the curry flavor for hubby)
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 garlic cloves, minced (ooops, left this out and didn't miss it at all)
4 cups "no chicken" broth (found at natural food stores like Whole Foods or Weaver Street Market)
2 cups veggie broth
1 (13. 5oz) can Coconut milk
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast, cooked and chopped OR tofu
1/2 cup choped green onions
1 TBS sugar
2 TBS fish sauce
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
16 oz bag of fresh spinach leaves

1. Bring 5 cups water to a boil in a large pot. Add noodles and cook according to package directions, usually about 5 - 7 minutes until tender but not over done. Drain and set aside.

2. Using the same pot (cutting down on dishes!) add oil to pot over med-high heat. Add chili peppers, shallots and next 5 ingredients though garlic. Saute about 1 minute, stirring constantly.

3. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add coconut milk, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.

4. Add chicken, onions, sugar, fish sauce, and spinach to pan, cook 2 minutes. Stir in cilantro and noodles to pot and serve!

If you have a favorite veggie like snow peas or carrots they may be a nice addition to this soup. Be creative and try adding something else if you like!

***if using tofu you may want to add it earlier on so it has time to gain flavor from the soup. Experiment and let me know how it works out and when you added it to the soup)