1 medium onion, diced
6 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon oil
6 green onions or shallots, sliced
4 large cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks lemongrass (or substitute
1 teaspoon lemon zest and a teaspoon or so of minced fresh ginger)
1 quart chicken broth
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
2 pounds chicken thighs or breasts
3 tablespoons miso paste*
1/2 cup fresh basil (or Thai basil)
Juice of 1 1/2 limes, or to taste
8 baby bok choy (Chinese cabbage)
8 to 10 mint leaves, torn into small pieces
1 bunch cilantro, leaves only
1 can (13.5 ounces) coconut milk
1/4 cup fish sauce,** or to taste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
1/8 cup rice wine vinegar, or to taste

Sauté onion in 6 tablespoons oil in large stock pot until translucent. Add green onions (or shallots) and garlic. Discard tough, brown stalk from lemongrass and chop tender green portion. Add to sauté along with chicken broth, grated ginger, carrots and 1 quart water. Meanwhile, debone chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces and sauté in frying pan with teaspoon oil until browned. As chicken is cooking, remove about 1/2 cup hot broth from stock pot and mix with miso until smooth. Return to pot along with basil and lime juice. Trim and discard ends from bok choy and add to soup along with mint leaves, cilantro leaves, coconut milk, fish sauce, pepper and vinegar. Taste and adjust amounts of lime juice, fish sauce and vinegar. Add browned chicken and juices from skillet to soup. Simmer an additional 10 minutes, or until carrots are tender. Serve by itself or over noodles.

Servings: 12. Serving size: 2 cups. Per serving: 289 calories, 27.1 g protein, 12.7 g fat, 18.6 g carbohydrates, 6.6 g dietary fiber, 827 mg sodium, 8.3 g sugars, 48 mg cholesterol

* Miso is a fermented soybean and/or rice product often used to make soups or sauces in Japanese cuisine. If it’s not available, try substituting soy sauce at a rate of a teaspoon of soy sauce per tablespoon of miso, or an equivalent amount of tahini (sesame paste).

** If you must substitute for the fish sauce, which is a condiment popular in Thai and Vietnamese cooking, try a combination of soy sauce and a squeeze of lime juice to equal the amount of fish sauce.