INGREDIENTS

Make sure to give yourself 2 1/2 hours to 3 hrs of prep and cook time, depending on how fast you work.

For the Curry Paste:

2 pods black cardamom

1 ½ tablespoons coriander seeds

0.75 oz ginger, thinly sliced

1 ½ inch fresh turmeric (about 5 g), thinly sliced, or sub 1 teaspoon ground turmeric

½ cup shallots, sliced ¼-inch thick

0.75 oz mild dried chilies, such as guajillo or puya

1 teaspoon coarse salt

For the Noodle Soup:

1 batch khao soi curry paste, (you will use all of the curry paste that you made)

1 ½ cups cocnut milk, plus extra for drizzling, if desired (see notes)

8 chicken drumsticks

3 cups water

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon black soy sauce

2-3 teaspoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon palm sugar, finely chopped and packed

3 oz egg roll wrappers

12 oz flat fresh egg noodles (also known as wonton noodles) or 6-8 oz dried egg noodles

Condiments:

Chopped cilantro

Green onions

1 lime, cut into wedges

¼ cup chopped shallots or red onion

Fried chili flakes in oil

½ cup chopped pickled mustard greens

INSTRUCTIONS 

For the Curry Paste:

Smash the cardamom pods with a pestle and remove the seeds. Place the seeds into a medium skillet. Add the coriander seeds and toast them over high heat, stirring constantly, until they darken slightly. Remove and set aside.

In the same skillet over high heat, sear the ginger and turmeric slices until slightly charred, about 2 to 3 minutes. Then flip and char the other side and remove from the pan.

In the same skillet over high heat, sear the sliced shallots until charred spots form; this will take just a few seconds. Then stir the shallots and let them char a bit more. Remove from the pan.

Remove the stems from the dried chilies. Use scissors to cut them into chunks. Remove most of the seeds. Add the chilies to a coffee/spice grinder along with the black cardamom and coriander seeds and grind into a powder.

In a mortar and pestle, pound the ginger and turmeric slices into a fine paste. Then add the shallots and the coarse salt and pound into a fine paste. 

When the mixture starts to get wet and slippery, add some of the ground spices to help absorb moisture. This will make it easier to grind. Once you've got a fine paste, add any remaining dried spices and pound to mix.

For the Curry Broth:

In a medium pot, add ½ cup of the coconut milk and bring to a boil over medium heat.

Add the curry paste and stir to dissolve, then keep stirring for a few minutes until the mixture is very thick and the coconut oil starts to sizzle around the edges of the paste. (If the paste is very thick and the coconut oil has not sizzled, this is okay, you can move on.)

Add the remaining coconut milk and stir to dissolve the curry paste. Then add water, soy sauce, black soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar, and the chicken drumsticks. Bring to a simmer, then turn the heat to low and let simmer gently, covered, for about 40 minutes, or until the drumsticks are fork-tender. 

Note: Keep the simmer gentle, as we do not want the soup to reduce too much.

While the chicken is simmering, make the crispy noodles and prep the condiments.

Once the chicken is done, taste and adjust the seasoning with more fish sauce or salt if needed. Remember to make the broth strongly seasoned, as it will be slightly diluted once the noodles are added. If it has become salty from reducing too much, you can simply add more water.

For the Crispy Fried Noodles:

Slice 3 oz of the egg roll wrappers into thin strips, no larger than ¼” wide. Loosen them and shake off excess flour.

Heat about 2" of frying oil in a wide pot or wok to 350°F over medium-high heat.

Add a SMALL handful of noodles (they will expand A LOT) to the oil and press them down as they fry to submerge them. Adjust the heat to keep it at 350ºF.

Fry until the noodles are golden brown and the bubbling is almost gone. Remove and drain on a paper towel. Repeat with the remaining noodles. 

Tip: If you've put in too many noodles and they cannot be submerged, you'll need to flip them halfway through.

*No bubbling means noodles are crispy, so you want to wait until the bubbles are almost gone before you take them out. If the noodles are browning faster than the bubbles can slow down, your heat is too high.

For the Fried Chili Flakes:

Add desired amount of spicy chili flakes to a small pot, and add just enough neutral-flavored oil so the chili flakes look like wet sand.

Turn the heat on medium-low and keep stirring until the chilies start to darken and smell smoky, just a few minutes. Transfer into a small bowl immediately to stop the cooking.

ASSEMBLY:

Prepare the Noodles:

Bring a large pot of water to a full boil on high heat. 

For fresh noodles:

Loosen the noodles and shake off any excess flour. Once the water is boiling, add the noodles and cook until done, according to package directions. This will vary by brand, so if you're not sure, keep checking them every minute or so.

For dried noodles: 

Prepare according to package directions. 

Once noodles are done, drain and mix with a little oil. If you have garlic oil, drizzle it on the noodles as it adds great flavor. Divide the noodles into two soup bowls. 

Place 1 to 2 chicken drumsticks into each bowl, then ladle the hot curry broth over them (the broth is quite rich, so you don't need much).

Top with a handful of the crunchy noodles and some chopped cilantro. Serve with your choice of green onions, lime, chopped shallots or red onion, fried chili flakes, and chopped pickled mustard greens. 

If you’d prefer a richer khao soi, drizzle about 1-2 tablespoons of coconut milk on top right before serving. Enjoy!

NOTES

If you’d like to use an immersion blender to make the curry paste, double the recipe. The extra curry paste may be frozen for months.