This winter we ate a lot. I mean, we ate a lot of soup. Who am I kidding, we did eat a lot, but we also ate a lot of soup. I became quite proficient at some of our ethnic favourites, this Thai Lemongrass Shrimp soup being one of them. I reverted back to an old favourite recipe from an Australian cookbook a friend gave me years ago, Bay Books Cookery Collection, Thai Cooking Class, written by Somi Anuntra Miller and Patricia Lake. It is a well-illustrated cookbook with some great background, techniques and lists of ingredients for successful Thai cooking. In fact, it is my GoTo Thai cookbook. I have tweaked the recipe to resemble that of a favourite Thai restaurant.
Shrimp Lemongrass Soup (Tom Yam Goong)
Makes about 500 mL soup
Ingredients:
- 500 mL chicken stock
- 8 pieces fresh galangal
- 8-12 Fresh Kaffir lime leaves
- 2 pieces of 2 cm lemongrass, sliced in half lengthwise
- 60 mL lime juice
- 15 mL fish sauce
- 2.5 mL chilli paste
- 5-10 g of cane sugar
- 8 fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined (skins reserved)
- 10 fresh cremini mushrooms, cut into quarters
- 80 g vermicelli rice noodles
- 2 Campari tomatoes, cut into 6ths
- Chiffonade of Cilantro leaves, Thai basil and thinly sliced green onions to garnish
Directions:
- Bring the chicken stock, galangal, Kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass along with the shrimp skin to a slow boil and then simmer for 30 to 60 minutes. Strain out the stock so that it is clear and without any bits.
- Add the lime juice, fish sauce, chilli paste and cane sugar and continue to simmer until sugar has completely dissolved. Taste for balance and add a bit of lime juice or sugar to balance if required.
- Boil water for the noodles, completely cover noodles in the hot water and allow to soak until al dente. Rinse in cold water to stop from cooking further.
- Bring the soup to a slow boil and add the mushrooms and shrimp and cook until the internal temperature of the shrimp is 120° F.
- Meanwhile, preheat the bowls (it’s winter and they cool down incredibly quickly). Reheat the noodles by running them under super hot water.
- Assemble the soup: add half of the heated noodles to each bowl, top with 4 shrimp in each bowl and spoon the hot liquid over the noodles and shrimp, dividing the mushrooms equally between the two. Add a cut tomato into each bowl and garnish with the chiffonade of cilantro and Thai basil and green onions.
I know I would love your version of this soup but unfortunately it is almost impossible for me to get several of the most important ingredients.
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Beautiful ! Another dish I love and haven’t made for ages ! I have I think 4 or 5 big Thai lime trees at home and don’t use the leaves often enough either…
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This is really great recipe! We really enjoyed this tasty soup, Eva. It was full of big bold flavors. The broth was amazing and the shrimp were perfectly cooked. It was certainly worth the extra effort. Thank you for sharing this with us! Pinned!
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Whenever I have a cold I crave this soup. Luckily I haven’t had a cold in more than 3 years! It’s time I quit waiting don’t you think. GREG
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Hehe, who does not eat a lot during the cold months? I mean, who doesn’t eat a lot of soup? Soup is the best kind of comfort food to me, and it doesn’t need to be heavy. I love this Thai Lemongrass Shrimp for being hearty but relatively light and packed with the flavour and texture. Delicious!
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This is one of my favourite Thai dishes, its nice to see you have it here
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I don’t know if I’ve ever used lemongrass in soup! But I will. 🙂 This looks fantastic — loaded with delightful flavors. Thanks!
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I would LOVE a bowl of your soup! I’ve never cooked with lemongrass; this is the perfect excuse to change that.
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The flavors sound wonderful, but I am not sure I can find all the spices here. I have tried a few Thai recipes and I’ve been using an Americanized cookbook of Vietnamese cuisine, which is great because I can really do the recipes in it. The second and third generation of Vietnamese immigrants to the US, whose families came after the war, have created their own cuisine, which is very nice.
be safe… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
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What a gorgeous bowl of soup! Plus, the flavor combo sounds terrific!!
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I love the beautiful colour and the delicious flavour! A really nice soup with plump shrimps.
angiesrecipes
http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com
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