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A Vegetarian Curry Laksa - A Spicy South East Asian Noodle Soup

This month, our little group (The 4-Velveteers) is continuing the journey of exploring each others cuisines. Last month Alessio got us cooking Sicilian Eggplant Caponata,
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Course soups stews
Cuisine singaporean
Servings 6 serving

Ingredients
  

For the spice paste:

  • 1 5 red onion shallots medium or baby , sliced
  • 1/2 tsp garlic garlic paste or cloves 2 to 3
  • 2 ginger u201d piece , sliced
  • 1 1/2 tsps lemongrass dried (or fresh, soft white stem only, sliced)
  • 2 tsps coriander seeds
  • 2 chillies large dried red
  • handful coriander fresh (leaves and stems)
  • a few Thai basil leaves of

For the Broth:

  • 3 tbsps vegetable oil
  • 4 cups vegetable stock
  • 3 sprigs curry leaves (or laksa leaves, if you can find them)
  • 2 tsps curry powder
  • to taste salt
  • 2 tbsps brown sugar
  • 400 ml coconut milk thick
  • 200 gm wheat noodles thick
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cups moong sprouts
  • 1 1/2 cups beans sliced french thinly
  • 1 1/2 cups carrot sliced sticks thinly

For the Fried Tofu:

  • 250 g firm tofu slab of , cut into cubes
  • 1/8 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/8 cup cornstarch

For the Chilli Sambhal :

  • 4 tbsps red chilli flakes
  • 2 heaped tsps ginger paste
  • 1 tsp garlic paste
  • 2 tbsps vegetable stock powdered cubes
  • 2 tbsps sesame oil
  • 2 tsps soy sauce dark
  • 1 tsp coconut vinegar (or plain)
  • 1 tsp jaggery
  • to taste salt (if necessary)
  • 3 or 4 quartered limes coriander , some chopped fresh for serving

Instructions
 

  • First make the spice paste. Grind the first eight ingredients in a small food processor bowl, adding a couple of tbsps water, into a reasonably smooth paste.
  • Heat the oil in a largish pan and fry the spice paste on medium heat, stirring all the time u2013 ensuring it doesnu2019t burn, till the raw small of the onion and garlic is no more. Add the vegetablestock, curry leaves, curry powder, the salt and sugar and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer the broth for about 20 minutes.
  • While the broth is simmering, cook the noodles in salted water till just done. Drain and keep aside. Put the moong sprouts in salted boiling water for about 30 seconds, drain and refresh in cold water. Drain and keep aside. You can also use the moong sprouts raw like I did, if you prefer.
  • In the same boiling water, blanch the beans for about 3 minutes and then the carrots for about 30 seconds. Refresh both in cold water, drain and keep aside.
  • Now fry the tofu cubes. Heat the oil in a wok. Mix the all purpose flour and the cornstarch and toss the tofu cubes in the flour till theyu2019re well coated.
  • Drop the cubes in the hot oil and fry them till theyu2019re golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels.
  • Once the broth is done, turn off the heat and remove the curry leaves and discard. Now add the thick coconut milk and mix well. Do not heat the broth once the coconut milk has been added or it might curdle. If youu2019re planning to serve the soup a little later, do not add the coconut milk. Add it just before you assemble the soup.
  • For the Chilli Sambhal, heat the oil in a small pan and add the chilli flakes, ginger and garlic pastes. Over medium heat, fry this until the oil surfaces, taking care to see it doesnu2019t burn.
  • Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. This sambhal is quite spicy and will stay for a couple of weeks, if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
  • To serve the laksa, place the noodles in the serving bowls. Put half the sprouts over this and ladle the broth into the bowls. Now add the beans, carrots, remaining sprouts and fried tofu cubes. Garnish with chopped coriander.
  • Serve with lime wedges for squeezing into the laksa, and chilli sambal on the side.

Notes

We loved it, and my daughter came asking for seconds so that should say a lot in itself! Of course, there are a lot of very “Indian” elements in the Curry Laksa whether it is the spice, the herbs or the coconut milk, so a lot of the flavours were very familiar.
A very warming and filling soup with the creamy richness of coconut milk, and as usual the perfect balance of salty, mildly sweet and sour, and spicy that always makes for the perfect dish.
The four of us (Alessio, Asha, Pamela and I) with anyone else who would like to join us, go exploring a new dish/ style of cooking/ cuisine every month. Each of us will share our recipes and experiences  on our blogs.
This month's Laksa recipes:
Alessio: Almond Laksa
Asha: Laksa Lemak
Lindsay: Laksa - Curried Moules Frites
Veena: Vegetarian Laksa
Sarah: Light Chicken Laksa