I had the most wonderful lemongrass shrimp soup last week at a little Thai place called Spice on 2nd Ave near 74th st. And only $3 a bowl! Add some crispy spring roll, a bowl of equally delicious coconut chicken soup, some Pad Thai (not the best I’ve ever had, but certainly acceptable), a glass of wine and a beer, and you’ve got dinner for two for around $20. Best cheap meal I’ve had in this city in a long time.
The next night, I found myself craving that shrimp soup, and found a recipe in Thai Home Cooking, a great cookbook that I had picked up in the used book store in Park Slope but had yet to make anything from. The pages for this recipe were wrinkled and stained, a sure sign that this recipe would be a keeper.
And it is. I’m looking forward to making it again after I’ve had time to scout out the right kind of mushrooms and chilies. Because I used canned tomato instead of fresh, my broth was not as clear as I’d like, but it sure was delicious!
Tom Yam Goong (with shrimp)
Lemongrass can be tough to find, even here in New York, unless you live in Chinatown. So be sure you know where to get it before planning this meal. Kaffir are easier to find, and you can store them in the freezer. Once you have the ingredients, this is one of the quickest soups you’ll ever make. Add noodles or serve it over some jasmine rice and you’ve got a really easy dinner. You could also make this soup with chicken if you’d prefer. Cut boneless breast into thin strips and cook in the broth till opaque, about 1-2 minutes.
12 oz jumbo shrimp (king prawns)
3 cups broth or water
2 stalks lemongrass, white part only, cut on a diagonal into 2 inch pieces
6 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tbsp coarsely chopped shallot, preferably pink
1 inch piece galangal or ginger, thinly sliced
2 firm tomatoes, cut into 8 wedges
1 cup straw mushrooms, rinsed and halved (I used button mushrooms)
10 small fresh green chilies, stems removed and halved lengthwise (prik khee nou) (I didn’t have these, so I used chili paste)
2-3 tbsp fish sauce, to taste
5 kaffir lime leaves, coarsely torn
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
Shell and de-vein shrimp, leaving tails intact and reserving shells and heads for broth. Cover and refrigerate till ready to use.
In medium saucepan, combine shrimp heads shells and broth or water, and bring to a boil. Using a skimmer, remove the shells and heads and discard. Bring back to a boil Add lemongrass, garlic, shallots and galangal to the broth, then tomatoes, mushrooms, fish sauce and kaffir lime leaves. Simmer gently till mushrooms are soft, then increase to a boil.
Add shrimp to broth and boil for no more than a minute.
Remove soup from heat and stir in lime juice. Transfer to bowls for serving, garnish with fresh cilantro and serve.
(Note – Don’t eat the galangal, lemongrass, kafir or chilies – just push them to the side of your bowl. According to this video I saw, you can leave the chilies out of the broth and put them into individual bowls before serving. Crush to increase spiciness. )
