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Seafood Lunch / Dinner Soups

Shrimp tom yum

Published: 04.10.2020 » Last updated: 09.24.2022

Cooked with fresh lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, galangal, lime juice, fish sauce and crushed red chilies, hot and sour shrimp tom yum is Thailand in a bowl.

Shrimp tom yum

Traditional shrimp tom yum uses unshelled shrimps, heads attached, which when simmered make a richly flavored broth. You may use frozen shelled shrimps AND shrimp broth without losing flavor. For more in prepping shrimps and making shrimp broth, see the post below.

Grilled skewered shrimps

How to clean, peel and devein shrimps and prawns

How shrimps and prawns should be deveined and prepped depends on how they are intended to be cooked. There is a simple way and there is a special way if you don’t want the shrimps or prawns to curl during cooking. Don’t throw away the shrimp heads and shells because you can make shrimp broth with them.

Read moreHow to clean, peel and devein shrimps and prawns

What about the kaffir lime leaves in the ingredients list? Is that available in the grocery? In some groceries, yes. They are sold fresh or dried. We get our supply from our own kaffir lime tree.

Kaffir time tree with fruits and leaves

Juice from regular limes is traditional for tom yum, but we just substitute kaffir limes for any dish that calls for regular limes.

Many Western versions of tom yum substitute ginger for galangal, but in Asian cooking, they are not interchangeable. Galangal and ginger are often cooked together but, when a recipe calls for galangal only, ginger is not a viable alternative.

Image showing difference between galangal and ginger
Photo from a cooking class my daughter and I attended in Chiang Mai, Thailand

So, will it be such a disaster if ginger were used in cooking shrimp tom yum instead of galangal? Well, disaster may be too strong a word. If you do substitute, the flavor of the dish will be different. Not necessarily bad; just different.

Full recipe below

Shrimp tom yum

Connie Veneracion
It is a soup but, like many soups in Asia, it is not uncommon to pair shrimp tom yum with rice.
Shrimp tom yum
Print Save! Saved!
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Total Time 20 mins
Course Soup
Cuisine Thai
Servings 4 people

Ingredients
  

  • 6 cups shrimp broth
  • 3 slices galangal - dried is fine
  • 2 whole stalks lemongrass - tied into a bundle
  • 2 shallots - peeled and halved
  • 2 pairs kaffir lime leaves - center ribs removed and discarded
  • 2 bird's eye chilies - slit
  • 2 tomatoes - cut into wedges
  • 24 medium shrimps - shelled and deveined
  • fish sauce
  • lime juice
  • torn cilantro - to garnish

Instructions
 

  • Pour the broth into a pot and bring to the boil.
  • Drop the galangal slices, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, chilies and tomatoes into the broth. Lower the heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
  • Add the shrimps to the broth.
  • If the broth is unseasoned or underseasoned, add fish sauce.
  • Cover the pot once more and simmer for five minutes, or just long enough to cook the shrimps but without overcooking them.
  • Taste the broth. Add more fish sauce, if needed.
  • Drizzle in the lime juice, a tablespoonful at a time, tasting and adding as you go along until a good balance of salty and sour is achieved.
  • Ladle your hot and sour shrimp tom yum into bowls, sprinkle with cilantro and serve immediately.
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Keyword Shrimps, Spicy

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Connie Veneracion, Chiang Mai, 2020

Hi, I’m Connie!

Welcome to Umami Days, a blog that advocates innovative home cooking for pleasurable everyday dining. No trendy diets, no food fads and definitely no ludicrous recipe names like crustless quiche, noodleless pho or chocolate lasagna.

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