For those who subscribe to The Epestle's paid content, you might have heard about my rough February. It involved not one, but two visits to the emergency room within a week, followed by a medical procedure under general anesthesia, and a surgery requiring yet another round of general anesthesia less than 24 hours later. A 3-day stay at the hospital and lots of morphine ensued.
All of this unfolded in just over a week before a long-planned 3-week trip to Japan. Miraculously, my body rebounded swiftly, surprising everyone including itself. So, with my doctor's approval, I managed to go ahead with my travel plans as scheduled. The first few days in Japan were pretty rough, though, and I had to take things extremely easy. Then, about a week into the trip, just as I started feeling somewhat normal, I, of course, tripped and fell on a hard concrete floor while exploring Lake Ashi in Hakone, bruising my left shoulder and a rib. Then, with my luck, just as I began to recover from all of this toward the end of the trip, I was hit with a non-COVID viral infection that caused relentless coughing, especially at night. The disrupted sleep certainly isn’t helping my jet lag. Also, imagine coughing your lungs out while having a bruised rib.
What I’m saying is that I'm in need of some serious self-care.
When dealing with a common cold, my go-to remedy is usually a large pot of southern-style turmeric chicken soup (kai tom khamin), a recipe featured in Simple Thai Food. Chicken soup, regardless of its cultural roots, is renowned for its healing properties. Combine that with the anti-inflammatory properties of turmeric, and you've got a dish that's both nourishing and delicious.
However, in my current state, I felt the need for a more potent remedy. Drawing from past experience, I know that a pot of piping hot tea of crushed ginger and turmeric and lots of cracked black peppercorns works wonders for anything from general malaise to a full-blown flu. While the healing properties of gingerol in ginger, piperine in black peppercorns, and curcumin in turmeric are well known, I don’t have anything more scientific to give you other than anecdotal evidence regarding the exact reason why this particular combination works so effectively.
So, I decided to tweak the classic Thai turmeric chicken soup with these ingredients to create a more potent brew.
Feeling unwell (and a bit lazy), I opted for the simplest method possible: using a whole chicken. No need to fuss over breaking it apart; just plop the whole bird into a stockpot. As for the turmeric, ginger, and peppercorns, a good smash with a granite pestle or meat mallet will do, while the green onions just need to be halved. Perhaps the most labor-intensive part is halving and juicing fresh limes.
I'm pleased to report that after three steaming hot servings of this peppery chicken soup, I've managed to shake off the cold, almost overcome my jet lag, and deal with the lingering pain without resorting to NSAIDs.
Try this soup anyway even if you’re feeling fine. At its core, it's a wonderfully comforting dish. Enjoy it piping hot (it's meant to make you break a little sweat) on its own, Western-style, or pair it with rice or freshly cooked, still-warm noodles—whatever suits your fancy.
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Paid subscribers, I’m not done telling you what I’ve learned about Thai food while in Japan yet—there’s more! I’m taking you to some of my favorite Thai places in Tokyo and Osaka this weekend. As promised, a dessert recipe featuring pakuchi is also coming up shortly.
Turmeric-Ginger-Black Pepper Chicken Soup
Serves 8
1 whole chicken, 3 3/4 to 4 pounds
Salt
3 ounces fresh turmeric, smashed, or 1 tablespoon turmeric powder
8 ounces fresh ginger, broken into smaller chunks and smashed
Generous 1/4 cup black peppercorns, coarsely cracked
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 bunch green onions, halved crosswise
Place the chicken in a 6-quart Dutch oven or stockpot. Cover with water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in about a tablespoon of salt, then lower the heat to a gentle simmer, close the lid, and cook for 40 minutes.
Add the turmeric, ginger, and peppercorns, re-cover the pot and cook until the chicken is tender, another 30 to 40 minutes.
Taste and add more salt as needed. Stir in the lime juice, then drop in the green onions. Cook for 5 more minutes, then turn off the heat.
Transfer the chicken to a large bowl and leave to cool. Remove (a mesh skimmer works well here) and discard the solids.
When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred the meat (and skin if you prefer) and add it back to the pot. Discard the bones.
Reheat the soup to get it piping hot and enjoy immediately.