Loaded with shrimp and mushroom, Tom Yum soup is spicy, sour, savoury, and addictive.
Of all the varieties out there, Tom Yum Goong is one of the most well-known Thai recipes. Goong means “shrimp” in Thai, as the soup is usually made using shrimp.
You can also make this soup with seafood such as squid or a combination of different seafood.
The best Tom Yum calls for shrimp stock, which you can make by boiling shrimp heads in water. A good stock guarantees a great tasting Tom Yum.
However, you can also make this soup with plain water or canned chicken stock, whichever takes your fancy.
Another secret is the use of nam prik pao, also known as Thai roasted chili paste. You can’t do without the aromatics: galangal, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and bird’s eye chilies.
To make Bangkok-style Tom Yum which is creamier and whiter in colour, add a few tablespoons of evaporated milk to the mix.
Once you have these ingredients, you will have the best bowl of homemade Tom Yum you’ve ever tasted.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups shrimp stock, canned chicken stock, or plain water
- 10-12 shrimp or 230g, head-on and shell-on but chop the eyes portion off, devein if you wish
- 3 1/2 tablespoons lime juice
- 6 bird’s eyes chilies, pounded
- 3 slices galangal
- 6 kaffir lime leaves (bruised)
- 2 tablespoons nam prik pao (Thai roasted chili paste)
- 2 tablespoons nam prik pao oil
- 3 teaspoons fish sauce
- 1 stalk lemongrass, cut into 7cm strips, pounded with a cleaver
- 6 canned straw mushrooms / fresh oyster mushrooms / fresh white button mushrooms
Method
- In a pot, bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Then add a big handful of shrimp/prawn heads.
- Boil the shrimp heads until the water turns slightly orange in colour. Press the shrimp heads with a spatula to extract the “goodies” (flavour).
- Let the stock reduce to slightly more than 2 1/2 cups. Drain the shrimp stock and discard the shrimp heads.
- Add lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, bird’s eye chilies, mushrooms and nam prik pao to the shrimp stock and bring it to a boil.
- Add in the shrimp and fish sauce.
- Lastly, add the lime juice (if you add lime juice too early, the soup might turn bitter). Boil until the shrimps are cooked, dish out and serve hot.
Tip: For the Tom Yum soup, you can also use chicken, a combination of chicken and shrimp, or a combination of seafood like shrimp, squid, scallops and green-lipped mussels. It’s really up to you.
This recipe can be found in Rasa Malaysia.
Low Bee Yinn is a food blogger and cookbook author.