Nothing better as a base for this tom yum goong soup than a homemade prawn broth! Tom yum what? This is a hot and sour Thai prawn soup, a very popular dish over there in Thailand. And very easy to make at home by the way.
You probably have heard of tom yum before.
Are you fond of Asian food?
And soups?
Then here is one that you definitely have to try out one day.
Yes, you can prepare Thai dishes at home!
Cooking Thai isn’t all that difficult… but of course you need to find the right ingredients, that is a fact.
Thai Food
So you love Thai food, and that is great.
And how is your Thai?
Let’s see what tom yum goong means (“ต้มยำกุ้ง” in Thai).
Do you know?
Each one of those 3 words tell you a lot about this recipe.
Tom means that the dish is boiled broth, and therefore hot.
Yum points towards a mixture of sweet and sour.
And the goong?
Well that stands for the prawn as a protein in this dish.
So there you go. Tom yum goong, or a boiled broth with sweet and sour prawns.
Prawns
Another dish that you are familiar with I am sure: tom kha gai. Tom, the broth. Kha stands for galangal, that ginger like root. And gai means chicken.
Interesting!
Easy Tom Yum Goong (Hot Sour Prawn Soup)
Back to our tom yum goong recipe again.
So I made a prawn broth from scratch for this soup with the heads and scales of the prawns (goong) that I use as a protein.
Have you ever made a broth with prawn heads before?
You should!
Prawn Heads
There’s still lots of juice and flavor left in those heads, it is such a waste if you throw them out straight away! If you have ever eaten whole grilled prawns and you (or you’ve seen people) suck out the cooked heads, you know why now.
I did the same to prepare my shrimp and cauliflower saffron soup!
So don’t throw the goodies out but use them for your broth base.
Enjoy!
Easy Tom Yum Goong Recipe
Tom yum goong, hot and sour Thai prawn soup in a homemade prawn broth! This is a popular Thai prawn soup and so easy to make at home!
- 3 cups water (720 ml)
- 12 fresh or frozen prawns unpeeled
- 2 red chili peppers
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 3 unpeeled garlic cloves
- 2 inch fresh ginger (5 cm)
- 2 stalks lemongrass
- 2 large tomatoes
- 4 small white mushrooms
- 2 tbsp palm sugar
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 1 fresh lime sliced in half
- chopped fresh cilantro or mint
- hot chili sauce
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1. Peel the shrimp and put them back in the fridge. Add the scales and heads to a large pot. Also add the dried chillies, sliced lime, the garlic cloves, lemongrass, fresh ginger and cold water.
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2. Place the pot over high heat and bring it to a boil. Then turn the heat low, cover the pan and simmer the shrimp scales in the broth for 20 minutes. Then turn the heat off and place the sieve over another large pan. Pour the broth and ingredients in it.
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3. Remove the red chili peppers and keep them aside. Stir the cooked scales and heads to get as much of the flavorful shrimp broth out. Then discard what’s left. Add the onion the broth as well as the red chili peppers and bring it to a gentle simmer again. Cook for about 6 to 8 minutes until the onion starts to soften.
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4. Slice the mushrooms and tomatoes in bite size bits. Add them to the soup together with the peeled raw shrimp. Season with half of the fish sauce, half of the lime juice, a little hot chili sauce and half of the palm sugar.
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5. Stir the soup and cook for another 2 minutes until the mushrooms are warmed through. Then check the seasoning and add extra hot chili sauce, palm sugar, fish sauce or lime juice to taste. Stir in the chopped cilantro.
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6. Scoop the hot and sour shrimp soup into large bowls and serve hot.
Origin
The first written record of a tom yum recipe is in 1888.
The soup did not look like the one we eat today. It used different ingredients to achieve the sour taste, such as green mango, pickled garlic brine or madan fruit.
The 3 essential ingredients that give tom yum its distinctive flavor (lemongrass, kaffir leaves and galangal) were probably added later as the soup evolved over time.
Versions
Tom yum soup has actually changed in modern times, with the recent addition of coconut milk to make “creamy tom yum” or “tom yum nam khon” (ต้มยำน้ำข้น), blurring the lines between tom yum and tom kha soup.
However the core of the soup remains the same: a spicy and sour broth that is bursting with flavor and aroma.
Is tom yum spicy?
Yes!
If you are interested in making this soup at home, try my recipe above!
If you are not into spicy food, you can of course use less chili.
Best tom yum goong in Bangkok
Here are 3 addresses!
Pee Aor Tom Yum Goong
A famous place for tom yum goong is Pee Aor Tom Yum Goong, a restaurant that is famous for its lobster tom yum goong noodle seafood soup (1200 THB, or 33 USD).
Tom Yum Kung Banglamphu
Another place is Tom Yum Kung Banglamphu that specializes in clear tom yum with big prawns (140 THB or 4 USD). This restaurant has created the perfect tom yum goong. that has the perfect balance of flavors.
T&K Seafood
We had our best tom yum goong at T&K Seafood located in Bangkok’s Chinatown. They truly serves one of the best in the city. The soup comes to the table in a Thai hot-pot style pot with a fire beneath so that the broth stays warm and heated for you to enjoy (140 THB or 4 USD).
Or simply make your own tom yum goong at home with fresh ingredients!
Tom yum goong soup is more than just a dish.