Hot and sour soup

Method

1. Heat the stock and tom yam paste in a decent sized saucepan with the lime leaves, lemon grass, lime-juice, fish sauce, chillies and sugar.

2. Bring to the boil, add the mushrooms and simmer for a couple of minutes, then add the prawns and spring onions and cook for a further 2-3 minutes, or until the prawns are cooked but still tender.

3. Sprinkle with a little coriander and put more on the table for people to add themselves as they want.

Cooks note: I know that for some people, nothing feels more restoring than something warm and unchallengingly bland but when it's succour and sustenance I need, it's spice that I want. This soup, tom yam-the culinary equivalent of Friar's Balsam, clears the tubes and brings fire to the jaded soul. And there's nothing like a bit of searing heat to push away any hungover seediness. It's good for those days when you're thick with cold, too.

It's easy to throw together, as well: the chicken stock I make out of boiling water and bouillon concentrate, and the tom yam paste is sold now at most supermarkets, along with the other ingredients, too.

Comments                        add a comment

Be the first to add a comment...

Ingredients

1.5 litres chicken stock
2 tbsp Tom yum paste
4 kaffir lime leaf, finely chopped
1 stick Lemon grass, tender inner part only, roughly chopped
1 lime, juice only
4 tbsp Fish Sauce
3 small red chillies, or green chillies, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs Thyme
150g straw mushrooms, or button mushrooms, halved or quartered according to size
500g Prawns, raw and peeled, thawed if frozen
5 small spring onion, cut into short lengths and then into strips
1 bunch Coriander

Top Sponsored Searches

You may also like

Like this recipe? Print Print this recipe Save Save this recipe to My Recipe Book Share Email to a friend

Offers & Promotions

Save money on shopping bills
Afternoon tea, curry cookery courses and more!
Special offers on wine