Laksa - Spicy Coconut Noodle Soup

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Boiled Egg

1. 1
   Bring a pot of water to a boil, deep enough to cover the eggs by about 2 cm.

   StovePot
2. 2
   Gently lower the eggs into it with a spoon.
3. 3
   Turn down the heat slightly and simmer 10–11 minutes.

   ⚙ SimmeringStove

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
4. 4
   Transfer immediately to a bowl of ice water for 5–10 minutes, and peel from the wide end.

   Ice bath

   💡Cold water right after cooking stops the cooking and separates the membrane from the white: peeling is easy, and the yolk doesn't turn gray.

To assemble

1. 5
   Heat the oil in a pot and fry the garlic and ginger in it 2 minutes, until fragrant.

   ⚙ Pan-fryingStovePot
2. 6
   Add the curry and fry 1 minute, until fragrant.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
3. 7
   Add the coconut milk, stock and fish sauce and bring to a boil.

   Stove
4. 8
   Add the chicken and cook 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked.

   Stove

   💡Thin chicken slices cook in the simmering stock within minutes and stay tender; a thick slice needs more time.
5. 9
   Sharpen the stock with the lime juice.
6. 10
   Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water (4¼ cups of water and a heaping teaspoon of salt for every 4 oz of pasta), following the package directions (taste about 2 minutes early), until al dente.

   ⚙ Cooking in salted waterStovePot

   💡The water should taste like a seasoned soup, not like sea water: a heaping teaspoon of salt per liter. Add the salt once the water is boiling.
7. 11
   Drain.

   Colander
8. 12
   Divide the noodles among the bowls and pour the boiling soup over them.

   Ladle
9. 13
   Halve the eggs and arrange them on top, then sprinkle with the cilantro.

   Knife