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This slow cooker version of my best-ever tom kha soup recipe (or Thai coconut chicken soup) is absolutely perfect… and made to be easier than ever! Light, yet filling and full of tangy flavor, it’s the best tom kha gai recipe I’ve ever made or tried and is so creamy, easy, and delicious.
What Makes This Soup So Good
- This recipe is based on my Best Ever Tom Kha Gai Soup, which is one of my most popular recipes for a reason. It’s creamy, yet light, tangy, yet sweet. It’s the perfect soup when it’s getting cooler outside (or just downright cold), or when you’re craving spicy Thai goodness. And it’s soooo good.
- Slow cooker Tom Kha Gai is full of delicious ingredients. And sure, I’ll admit, this soup was already easy… but the slow cooker makes it even easier! I really love slow cooker recipes. Just toss everything in and come back in a few hours to a delicious meal!
- This recipe can fit a variety of dietary needs! We’ve included specific dietary variations below, but you can adapt this slow cooker Tom Kha Gai to be Whole30-compliant, paleo, vegan, or vegetarian. You could also sub in shrimp for the chicken if you don’t eat poultry!
Key Ingredients
Red Thai Curry Paste – Made from red chilis, this paste is a little sweet, spicy, and savory and adds a major punch of flavor to your Crockpot tom kha gai.
Lime Leaves – Kaffir lime leaves are traditional to Thai cooking and add a delicious citrus and floral aroma.
Galangal or Ginger – Galangal is citrusy, while ginger is sharp and spicy. If you can’t find galangal, ginger will work just fine.
Lemongrass – Citrusy and tangy, lemongrass gives the slow cooker tom kha gai a lemony, minty flavor.
Coconut Milk or Cream – Rich, sweet, and creamy, coconut milk or cream makes this tom kha light, filling, and full of flavor.
Dietary Variations
- If you’re vegan or on Whole30, sub the chicken broth with 2 more cans of full-fat coconut cream or coconut milk.
- For vegan or vegetarian slow cooker tom kha, sub out the chicken with tofu. Use a 1-pound block of firm or extra firm (can be regular or silken) tofu cut into cubes. Use soy sauce to taste instead of using fish sauce.
- If you’re on Whole30, use 2 tablespoons of coconut aminos instead of coconut sugar. You’ll also want to make sure you use fish sauce that doesn’t have sugar. The only one I know of is Red Boat Fish Sauce.
- You can also use shrimp instead of chicken. Add 1 pound of raw shrimp instead of the chicken and heat until it’s cooked through (it’ll be pink and no longer translucent).
Chef’s Tips
- Be sure to usecoconut cream or coconut milk. Coco lopez and coconut creamer arenotthe same as coconut cream/coconut milk and will not work in this recipe.
- Refrigerate any leftover slow cooker tom kha gai in an airtight container. It’ll keep up to a week (it usually disappears way faster than that at my house, though!).
- While the lime leaves are optional, I hiiiiighly recommend using them if you can! They add a ton of this incredible lime flavor to tom kha that’s slightly different than the flavor you get from lime juice alone. Just make sure not to actually serve the leaves – they’re tough and not pleasant to eat.
More Delicious Asian-Inspired Recipes to Try
- Tom Yum Soup
- Hibachi Steak with Fried Rice and Vegetables
- Tofu and Broccoli
- Delicious Baked Tofu
- Hibachi Chicken with Fried Rice and Vegetables
- 15 Minute Spicy Ramen
- Kung Pao Beef
- Keto Ramen
- Whole30 Sushi – Spicy Salmon Roll (Low Carb, Paleo, Keto Friendly)
- Keto Egg Drop Soup
- Beef Pad Thai
Recipe By: Cheryl Malik
4.97 from 31 votes
Slow Cooker Tom Kha Soup (Thai Coconut Chicken Soup)
Prep 10 minutes minutes
Cook 8 hours hours
Total 8 hours hours 10 minutes minutes
This slow cooker version of my best-ever tom kha soup recipe (or Thai coconut chicken soup) is absolutely perfect… and made to be easier than ever! Light, yet filling and full of tangy flavor, it's the best tom kha gai recipe I've ever made or tried and is so creamy, easy, and delicious.
6 servings
Equipment
Crockpot or similar slow cooker
Slotted spoon
Ingredients
- half of one onion sliced
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- half of one red jalapeño pepper sliced; or a couple Thai chiles, halved
- 3 quarter-inch-long slices galangal or ginger
- 1 lemongrass stalk pounded with the side of a knife, cut into 2-inch-long pieces
- 10 lime leaves torn, optional
- 1 tablespoon red Thai curry paste
- 4 cups chicken broth see Notes
- 2 13.5-ounce cans full-fat coconut milk or coconut cream
- 2 small chicken breasts approximately 1 pound, cut into bite-sized pieces; see Notes for alternatives
- 8 ounces white mushroom caps sliced
- 2-3 tablespoons brown sugar or coconut sugar, see Notes
- 2-3 tablespoons fish sauce plus more to taste
- 2-3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2-3 green onions thinly sliced
- chopped fresh cilantro for garnish
Instructions
Add onion, garlic, jalapeño or chile, galangal or ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves, red curry paste, and chicken broth to slow cooker. Stir to incorporate, then cover slow cooker with lid.
Cook on high heat for 2 to 3 hours, or low heat for 4 to 6 hours. After cook time is up, use slotted spoon to remove all aromatics, leaving broth behind.
Add in coconut cream or milk, chicken breast (or tofu or shrimp), and mushrooms. Cook on high heat 1 hour or low heat 2 hours, or until chicken breast pieces are cooked through.
After cooking, add sugar, fish sauce, and lime juice. Taste and add more of each ingredient as desired. Ladle soup into serving bowls and top with sliced green onions and fresh cilantro. Serve warm.
- Shrimp Variation: Use 1 pound of raw shrimp instead of the chicken. Cook until shrimp is pink, slightly curled, and no longer translucent.
- Make it Vegan/Vegetarian: Use vegetable broth or a vegan chicken broth. Sub chicken with a 1-pound block of firm or extra firm (can be regular or silken) tofu cut into cubes. Use soy sauce to taste instead of fish sauce, or use a vegan fish sauce.
- Make it Whole30: Use compliant chicken broth. Replace brown or coconut sugar with 2 tablespoons coconut aminos and use a compliant fish sauce without sugar (the only one I know of is Red Boat Fish Sauce).
Approximate Information for One Serving
Serving Size: 1servingCalories: 391calProtein: 22gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 25gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 52mgSodium: 1162mgPotassium: 805mgTotal Carbs: 14gFiber: 1gSugar: 7gNet Carbs: 13gVitamin A: 485IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 55mgIron: 5mg
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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Cheryl Malik
In addition to being a certified health coach, certified yoga instructor, and mom of 3, Cheryl is also the recipe developer, editor-in-chief, food photographer, and passionate foodie behind 40 Aprons. Having spent the last 10+ years as a food blogger, she's become known for her flavorful recipes, detailed instructions, gorgeous photography, and down-to-earth approach to food and cooking in general.
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This is one of the best soups we’ve ever made… The lime leaves make all the difference too. Easy to prep in our busy schedule and made double broth so could freeze for another day. Thank you so much for bringing this into our lives 🙂
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We’re so glad you love it, Sarah! Thanks for sharing!
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Can I freeze this?
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Sure! Some of the ingredients may become mushy after freezing and defrosting, but overall it should be just fine.
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This is so good!! I made this in my instapot to decrease cook time. I also added a bag of frozen stir fry veggies because I wanted more veggies. Next time I’ll try adding bok choy as some others suggested. Other than that I followed the recipe as is and it came out great! Thanks!
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So glad you loved it, Yvonne! We love making it in the Instant Pot, too! Did you use our Instant Pot recipe (https://40aprons.com/instant-pot-tom-kha-soup/) or did you adapt this version?
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I did the shrimp variation, I couldnt find red jalapenos so I used 2 fresno peppers instead and it turned out great. So good! Such a comfort meal, this would be great if you had a cold I think.
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Thank you, Cynthia! And you’re definitely right, it’s one of our go-tos if we’re under the weather.
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LOVE this recipe! Next time will use the higher amount of red/jalepeno peppers, brown sugar and lime juice. Couldn’t find lime leaves, so used lime rinds while the broth simmered that seemed like an ok option. Decided to sub chicken with halibut as mentioned by another reviewer, added bok choy- both added in the last 5-10 minutes. Served over rice. Delish!
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Yumm- that sounds delicious! So glad you loved it! 😊
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My husband said he would like to eat this three nights a week, AND it is better than our favorite Thai restaurant makes. A couple modifications I made, just due to the ingredients we had…. Lemongrass paste (instead of fresh) and added bok choy and chunks of halibut instead of chicken. Dropped those in for the last 5 mins of cooking (and turned up the heat). Guess I’m making this 3 times a week now 😀
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So glad you and your husband love it, May! Your modifications sound delicious- thanks for sharing!
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I am so happy with the way this came out! When I follow this recipe and measure correctly, it really matches the flavor of the local family owned restaurant.
I used lemongrass paste from Vons because I couldn’t get a hold of fresh, whole lemongrass at the time. And even though this recipe specifically said DO NOT substitute Ginger instead of Galangal, I had no choice bit to take other people’s advice and add some Ginger from a tube(same style and brand as the tubed lemongrass puree).
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So glad you enjoyed it, Jason! Thanks for sharing! 😊
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It was absolutely phenomenal. I’ve added some Seafood Mushrooms I found at the Asian Market in addition to the mushrooms and I also found some bok choi. I would recommend adding that for the last 30ish minutes. We are it basically as a sauce with jasmine rice to make it a little bit more filling. I will make a second batch tomorrow and put it in the freezer.
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Thanks for the helpful tips- we’re so glad you enjoyed it! 😊
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I swapped chicken breast for chicken thighs and it was fantastic! Definitely a family favorite
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A fantastic swap! Thank you so much for sharing your review with us, Emily!
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Delicious flavors, I used red Chile paste because I didn’t have the peppers on hand and added some zucchini for extra veggies. Definitely tweak to your personal preferences, have fun with it.
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Love how you mixed it up, Julia! Thank you so much for sharing your version with us!
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Best Ever Tom Kha Gai Soup (Thai Coconut Chicken Soup)
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Meet Cheryl
Passionate foodie, certified health coach, serial entrepreneur, and mom of 3.
I've been developing and sharing delicious, approachable recipes on 40 Aprons for more than a decade. My goal is simple: take the chore out of mealtime by creating recipes that anyone can cook and that never skimp on flavor.
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