Cooking Tom Yum Goong ต้มยำกุ้ง
My Tom Yum Goong soup is from a Thai woman's receipt, cooked with the same fresh spices Thais use. This soup is a good as it gets. This is straight forward to make, I made it, and I'm just a computer guy.
Ingredients to make about 8 small bowls (cup size)
| Ingredient | Quantity | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Lemon grass | 2 pieces (stems) | Chinese/Asian grocery store |
| Galanga (or spelled Galangd). Looks similar to ginseng. | 1-2 pieces | Chinese/Asian grocery store |
| Thai chillies | 3-4 medium 5-8 very hot | Chinese/Asian grocery store |
| Cilantro | leaves from 10 stems or more for taste | Chinese/Asian grocery store |
| Thai oil based Chili | small jar, 1/2 pint size or smaller | Chinese/Asian grocery store |
| Straw Mushrooms | 1 can | Chinese/Asian grocery store |
| Green onions | 3-5 sticks | grocery store |
| Green Thai spice leaves called kiffer lime leaves. I substituted young leafs from a lemon tree. | 10-12 leaves | Chinese/Asian grocery store or from a lemon tree |
| Fresh lemons. | 3, or, 2 lemon and 1 lime I use 2.5, balance with hot spices | Grocery store or from a lemon tree |
| Fresh or frozen large shrimp | 1 pound, with heads which makes 1 or 2 shrimp per serving, 4-6 inches long | Chinese/Asian grocery store |
Prepare spices, vegetables, and shrimp.
* Chop lemon grass at 45 degree angle into 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch pieces. For visual, take the center out, chop the center in 1/4 pieces for flavor, and cut the out part, which is like a straw, into 1 inch pieces, cut at a 45 degree angle for visual effect. These straw pieces are served in the bowl, but not eaten.
* Green onions are cut into 1-2 inch pieces, separate white & green
* Wash the Thai chillies then cut them into 1/4 inch pieces. Wash the seeds away. If you want really hot soup, keep some of the seeds.
* Wash the lemon leaves (kiffer leaves).
* Wash the galanga and slice into thin pieces, an 1/8 of inch.
* Wash a few pieces of cilantro.
* Drain liquid from can of Straw Mushrooms.
* Cut or pull the heads off the shrimp and remove the antennas.
* Take the meat out of the body of the shrimp.
Create the shrimp soup base.
* Heat pot up.
* Add small amount of oil to pot.
* Add shrimp heads, and heat until they turn pink, not cooked.
* Add water and bring to a boil.
* Boil for 5 minutes. Use prongs, and squeeze the shrimp heads as they are removed from the water. This is to get the flavor into the water. The heads are thrown away.
This is the soup base, light pink shrimp flavored water.
Spice the Soup Base
Add spices: Lemon grass, Thai chillies, Galanga, and lemon leaves. Crinkle the lemon leaves before adding to help bring out the flavor. Bring to a boil, boil for 5 minutes.
Add a big heaping table spoon of Thai chili sauce. I used about 1/4 to 1/3 of my small jar. Bring to a boil, boil for 5 minutes.
This is the soup. If you are taking the soup to a party, take the pot with the rest of the ingredients. At the party, complete the soup as follows.
Preparation Step before Serving the Soup
* Add mushrooms, shrimp bodies, and green onions. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat off.
* Add the juice of 2 to 3 lemons. I like 1 and 1/2 lemon, and 1 lime.
* Scoop soup, with some of the spices and 1 or 2 shrimps, into a bowl.
* Add leaves from 2-3 pieces cilantro. Or add more, the amount to your taste.
* Ready to eat, serve.
A nice accompany dish is Thai Green Curry served on white rice.
Posted at 12:31PM Jun 04, 2007 by Stacy Thurston in Southeast Asia | Comments[0]