Thai Curry Soup

Now, I recognize that this is going to seem counter-intuitive. It is the 4th of July, and I'm sitting in my house eating coconut curry soup. But we partied ourselves out for America all weekend long, and by today, all I wanted to do was sit on my couch, in my newly decorated living room, and eat soup. So I did.

Plus, I'm on a bit of a kick with this soup - it's seriously good. Maybe my favorite ever.

The ingredients can be a bit of a pain in the butt to find - I got almost everything at either Whole Foods (seitan, tamari) and the Global Foods Market (thai basil, coconut milk, thai red curry paste).
So here's a cheat sheet: seitan can be subbed with extra firm tofu, tamari is basically gluten-free soy sauce, & thai basil can be plain old basil. However, coconut milk & thai red curry can't be substituted, so if you don't have at least an Asian grocery nearby, you may be out of luck. Thai red curry & coconut milk are actually canned though, so if you ever see a store out of town, just run in because those things aren't temperature sensitive.

It might be weird, but to me, this is perfect wild-weekend recovery food.

Thai Red Curry Soup

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Serves 6-8

1 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 large red bell pepper, chopped

1 container button mushrooms, chopped

8 ounces seitan, chopped

4 Tablespoons vegan red curry paste

2 heaping cups peeled and diced russet potatoes

2 cups green beans, trimmed

2 cups unsweetened coconut milk

5 cups vegetable broth

1 Tablespoon tamari

salt and pepper, to taste

heaping 1/4 cup fresh thai basil, chopped

Sriracha sauce, optional condiment

Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Saute bell pepper and mushrooms for about 5 minutes. Add seitan and red curry paste. Stir to distribute curry paste, about 2 minutes. Add potatoes and green beans and saute about 1 minute more. Add coconut milk, broth, and tamari. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Simmer for about 10 minutes, or until potatoes are done. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in fresh basil before serving. Garnish with Sriracha sauce for a spicier taste.