Since I started getting more experienced in the kitchen, I have relied more and more on my own homemade spice blends and always try to get the best quality herbs and spices when possible. So I tend towards being a little mistrustful when it comes pre-made spice blends purchased from grocery stores and even from smaller stores that specialize in particular cultural cuisines.
However, I was recently offered a chance to try a few blends from RawSpiceBar. This company offers high quality whole and ground toasted spices from around the world. Free of additives, many of the spices are organic and most of the blends are salt-free, gluten-free, paleo and vegan friendly. You can get a spice subscription, and they also offer gift subscriptions and starter sets. As a home cook who recognizes the importance of high quality spices to really enhance the flavor of dishes and also one who enjoys a culinary exploration of cuisines from various cultures and traditions, I was intrigued by the vast selection, and more than delighted to try a few samples.
Of the three blends I received, the most inspiring was a Malaysian curry powder as it contained some of my favorite aromatic spices. The aroma by itself was enough to try it out right way in a vegetable-based soup to showcase and taste the results for myself. After some research, I decided to make a vegetarian laksa and began to draft a recipe. The result of my efforts was a soup that very much reminded me of many of the vegetable Thai soups I have made in the past.
I'm now eager to try more of the many spices and blends offered up by this company. If the Malaysian curry powder is any indication of the quality of the offerings, I would highly recommend you take a look around.
But back to the laksa.
For those unfamiliar with laksa, it is spicy coconut curry noodle soup, often featuring chicken or shrimp, but as I follow a vegetarian diet, the focus of my soup was vegetables in addition to noodles. Some cooks use tofu, but as I rarely eat tofu, I was particularly generous with the veggies and rice noodles. It's popular in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and southern Thailand. It has a creamy base in which the vegetables and noodles are simmered, along with a fragrant aromatic paste.
The paste was made up of a few teaspoons of the curry blend, along with other spices and additions that suited my fancy as I was drafting the recipe. I went with fairly wide rice noddles for the soup for extra texture. I also used a variety of vegetables, focusing particularly on mushrooms, and used coconut milk for a creamy, fairly thick soup and also some tamarind for a tart, sweet and somewhat sour element.
Though I was most pleased with the quality of the blend I tried, go ahead and try my recipe without the blend. Use a fairly mild or medium curry powder, such as my homemade curry powder, or instead use some Thai red curry paste. I suggest my homemade version. See the notes following the recipe for suggestions based on what sort of flavor you are going for.
Don't be intimidated by the list of the ingredients or the suggestions I make here. Remember, recipes are essentially only a guideline and the more you experiment in the kitchen, the better cook you will become.
Other soups you may enjoy from Lisa's Kitchen:
Thai Red Curry Vegetable Soup
Spicy Thai Pumpkin Noodle Soup
Creamy Thai Coconut Mushroom Soup
Thai-Style Coconut and Roasted Carrot Soup
On the top of the reading stack: Second Opinion: A Doctor's Dispatches From The Inner City by Theodore Dalrymple
Audio accompaniment: Tom Houghton - MICRODOSING.
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