Description
Make authentic, restaurant-quality Tom Yum Goong. This hot and sour Thai soup balances spicy, sour, and savory flavors using traditional aromatics.
Ingredients
Scale
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 2 stalks lemongrass, bruised and cut into 2-inch pieces
- 6 slices galangal (or ginger if galangal is unavailable)
- 5 kaffir lime leaves, torn
- 2–4 Thai chilies, crushed (adjust to your spice preference)
- 1/2 cup straw mushrooms or button mushrooms, halved
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish
- 1 tablespoon chili paste in oil (Nam Prik Pao) (optional, for color and depth)
Instructions
- Combine the broth, lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, and crushed chilies in a medium pot. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes to allow the aromatics to infuse the broth.
- Strain the broth to remove the lemongrass, galangal, and kaffir lime leaves, returning the liquid to the pot. Discard the solids.
- Add the mushrooms and chili paste in oil (if using) to the broth. Simmer until the mushrooms soften, about 3 minutes.
- Add the shrimp to the pot. Cook until the shrimp turn pink and opaque, about 2-3 minutes. Do not overcook.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the fish sauce, lime juice, and sugar. Taste and adjust seasoning—add more lime juice for sourness or fish sauce for saltiness.
- Ladle the soup into bowls. Garnish generously with fresh cilantro before serving immediately.
Notes
- For a chicken version, substitute the shrimp with 1 cup of sliced chicken breast and simmer until cooked through before adding the lime juice.
- For a vegan version, use vegetable broth, substitute shrimp with firm tofu cubes, and replace fish sauce with soy sauce or vegan fish sauce substitute.
- To achieve the best flavor balance, add the lime juice last, off the heat, as boiling lime juice can make the soup taste bitter.
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop Simmering
- Cuisine: Thai
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 120
- Sugar: 3
- Sodium: 650
- Fat: 3
- Saturated Fat: 0.5
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.5
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 8
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 15
- Cholesterol: 110