Tom Yam Gung
- Serves 3-4
Tom Yam Gung was one of the first things I tried when I first started exploring Thai food in the nineties. It was also one of the first things I learnt to perfect on my first trip to Bangkok. This recipe might be really quick and simple, but good quality ingredients are key here.
Number 1: Quality chicken or seafood stock - you could either use homemade chicken stock or put together an easy seafood stock using fresh prawn shells that you would usually discard in this recipe. A quick recipe is included in notes below.
Number 2: The freshest Thai herbs you can find - best if you get hold of Thai lemongrass, lime leaves. Thai lime and galangal (most of the time sold in one pack) at your Thai/Asain grocery store. Otherwise, most international supermarkets sell the special Tom Yam herbs pack in their international herbs/vegetable section. I have noticed a startling difference in taste as and when I have made this recipe using fresh herbs in Thailand vs. the same herbs (probably a few days old) in other countries; the fresher the better!
Number 3: One of the key ingredients here apart from fresh herbs is “Thai Roasted Chili Paste”, sold in glass jars in most Asian/Thai supermarkets. Made with dried chilies, tamarind and dried shrimp, this glossy paste doesn’t just impart a delicious tangy flavor to Tom Yam, but also gives it its characteristic orange color.
Ingredients
3 cups chicken or shrimp or vegetable stock
1 thumb sized piece galangal, peeled and sliced
2 stalks lemongrass, bottom thick part sliced diagonally
6 kaffir lime leaves, torn
1 can straw mushrooms or oyster mushrooms, drained and halved
1 medium tomato, chopped into large cubes, or 6 cherry tomatoes, halved
10 large Tiger prawn, peeled and deveined - keep tail intact
1-3 bird’s eye chilies, very finely chopped or crushed in a mortar and pestle
4 tablespoons fish sauce (taste your stock and add fish sauce accordingly)
2 tablespoons milk or 4 tablespoons coconut milk
2 tablespoons roasted chili paste (I use Mae Pranom brand)
3 tablespoons lime or lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves, for garnish
Recipes
1. Pour stock in a saucepan and heat on medium-high flame. Next add sliced galangal, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
2. Add mushrooms, chopped tomatoes and prawn. Increase heat and bring to the boil again. Reduce heat and simmer for 4-6 minutes until shrimps cook through.
3. Chop chilies, then pound them using a mortar and pestle. Season soup with crushed chillies, fish sauce, milk/coconut milk and roasted chili paste - stir well. Bring to a boil on medium-high flame.
4. Take it off the heat, add lime juice and stir well. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve immediately.
Note: To make your own seafood or chicken stock, place 20-30 large prawn shells (shells only) or 1-2 whole chicken carcasses in a saucepan and fry with 1 tablespoon oil for a few minutes, until they change color. Add 1 roughly chopped onion, 1 roughly chopped carrot, 1 roughly chopped celery, 2 cloves garlic, 1 bay leaf, 10-15 whole black peppercorns and 2 coriander roots. Fry for a few more minutes before adding just enough water to cover the contents of the saucepan. Bring to a simmer, skim the scum off, and discard. Reduce heat, cover, and continue to simmer for 30-40 minutes for seafood stock and for upto 2 hours for chicken stock. Keep skimming the impurities during the cooking process. Strain broth into a clean bowl using a mesh strainer. Discard bones and vegetables. Refrigerate broth in airtight containers for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.