Tom Yum Goong (Hot and Sour Prawn Soup)
Sour, salty, hot and aromatic in that order. The prawn shells make the stock, which is why it tastes deeper than the twenty minutes it takes.
Nutrition Info (per serving)
- 210
- Calories
- 28g
- Protein
- 5g
- Fat
- 12g
- Carbs
Ingredients
- 500 g whole prawns, shell on
- 1.2 litres water
- 2 stalks lemongrass
- 1 thumb galangal
- 6 kaffir lime leaves
- 200 g oyster or straw mushrooms
- 4 tbsp fish sauce
- 4 limes
- 6 bird's eye chillies
- 2 tbsp Thai chilli paste (nam prik pao)
- 3 tbsp evaporated milk, optional
- Small bunch coriander
- 2 spring onions
Instructions
- 1Peel the prawns, keeping the shells and heads. Devein the bodies and set them aside in the fridge.
- 2Heat a dry saucepan over medium-high and add the shells and heads. Press them with a spoon and cook for 3 minutes, until they turn deep orange and smell sweet.
- 3Add the water, bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Strain out the shells and return the stock to the pan. This is the step that separates a good tom yum from a sour broth with prawns in it.
- 4Meanwhile, bruise the lemongrass with the back of a knife and cut it into 4 cm lengths. Slice the galangal into coins. Tear the lime leaves in half. Halve the mushrooms and lightly crush the chillies.
- 5Add the lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves to the stock and simmer for 5 minutes to draw out the aromatics.
- 6Add the mushrooms and the chilli paste and simmer for 2 minutes more.
- 7Add the prawns and cook for 90 seconds only, until they curl and turn opaque. They keep cooking in the hot broth, so pull the pan off the heat while they still look barely done.
- 8Take the pan off the heat before seasoning — boiling destroys the fresh sourness. Add the fish sauce, the juice of the limes and the crushed chillies.
- 9Taste and balance. It should hit sour first, then salt, then heat. Add more lime if it tastes flat, more fish sauce if it tastes sharp.
- 10Stir in the evaporated milk if you want the creamy version, then scatter over chopped coriander and sliced spring onion.
Tom yum is a balancing act, not a recipe. The ingredient list is short and the cooking is quick; nearly all the skill is in the last two minutes, when you taste and adjust.
The shells are the stock
Prawn shells and heads are full of flavour that never reaches the pot if you buy peeled prawns. Toasting them dry for a few minutes, then simmering them for ten, gives you a broth with real body and a sweetness that water plus seasoning cannot fake.
It costs you almost nothing — you are throwing the shells away otherwise — and it is the single biggest quality difference in the dish.
If you only have peeled prawns, use a light chicken stock rather than water, and accept that it will be a different soup.
Bruise, do not chop
Lemongrass, galangal and kaffir lime leaves go in whole or in large pieces, and nobody is expected to eat them. Bruising lemongrass with the flat of a knife cracks the fibres so the oils escape into the broth, while keeping the pieces big enough to push aside on the plate.
Galangal is not ginger. It is sharper, more piney, almost medicinal, and ginger substituted for it gives you a soup that tastes pleasant but not like tom yum. Frozen galangal works perfectly and most Asian shops carry it.
Season off the heat
Lime juice loses its brightness when boiled — the volatile aromatics go and you are left with a dull sourness. Fish sauce behaves similarly, turning harsh rather than savoury.
So the pan comes off the heat, and then the fish sauce, lime and chillies go in. This is standard practice in Thai kitchens and it is not a small difference.
Clear or creamy
Tom yum nam sai is the clear version. Tom yum nam khon adds evaporated milk at the end, which softens the edges and gives it a pale orange colour. Neither is more authentic than the other; the creamy one is more common in restaurants abroad.
The chilli paste, nam prik pao, is what gives both versions their deep red-brown tint and a background sweetness. It keeps for months in the fridge.
Nutrition
At around 210 calories a bowl with 28 grams of protein, this is one of the leanest genuinely satisfying dishes there is. Prawns bring selenium, iodine and B12; the lime contributes vitamin C, and the chillies more than you would expect.
It reheats badly — the prawns turn rubbery — so make the stock ahead if you want, but cook the prawns fresh.
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