The tom kra kai ($3.95) at Thai Sticks (4319 Montrose, 713-529-4500) is the perfect food to warm your heart, soul or any other part of your body. This thick, hearty soup is so full of ingredients, you can’t even see the bottom of the bowl. Pale-white chicken meat floats in a creamy-white coconut milk base, with shiitake mushrooms and chives adding a hint of color. It’s wonderfully seasoned with galanga (a member of the ginger family), lime juice, cilantro and dried chilies.
This article appears in Oct 5-11, 2006.