10 Ways with Galangal

This rhizome is related to ginger but has a thinner skin, a pinkish color and a distinct flavor – more sour and far less than ginger, with an aromatic, pine-resin scent. It's an essential ingredient in Southeast Asian cooking, particularly Thai and Indonesian, and is perhaps most familiar as one of the main ingredients in Thai Tom Kha Gai soup ("kha" is galangal's Thai name). While it can be found in dried or powdered form, fresh or frozen is the most flavorful. Here we've gathered recipes for dishes using galangal from around Southeast and East Asia, plus a surprise chocolate-galangal cookie recipe.