Thai Chicken and Rice Soup

While this recipe does call for fish sauce, trust me, it is not even slightly fishy tasting - it just adds to the overall flavor, which is very good!
8 C. chicken stock
4 C. water
1 Tbsp. Thai green curry paste
4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 (2-inch) piece peeled fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
1 tsp. coriander seeds, crushed
2 C. loosely packed whole fresh cilantro leaves plus 1/2 C. chopped
1 C. jasmine rice
3/4 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced crosswise, then slices cut lengthwise into thin strips
1 14 oz. can unsweetened coconut milk, stirred well
1/4 lb. snow peas, trimmed and cut diagonally into 1/4 inch strips
2 Tbsp. Asian fish sauce
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 1/2 tsp. salt, or to taste
Combine stock, water, curry paste, garlic, ginger, coriander seeds and whole cilantro leaves in a 3 to 4 quart saucepan, simmer, uncovered until ginger is softened, about 15 minutes. Pour through a paper towel lined sieve into a 5 to 6 quart heavy pot and discard solids. Stir rice into soup and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 15 minutes.
Add chicken and poach at a bare simmer, uncovered, until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Stir coconut milk, snow peas, and fish sauce and simmer, uncovered, until peas are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice, salt and chopped cilantro. Serve with lime wedges. Serves 8 main course settings.