The elusive lilt of lemongrass. The sour, puckery smack of tamarind. The warm-your-belly pervasiveness of galangal. And the unmistakably forthright—and, let’s face it, slightly funky—flavor of fish sauce. They meld to marvie effect in this exquisitely authentic rendering of an oft-replicated, but rarely-true-to-tradition, Thai soup. Pucker up for a perfectly pitched tang.–Renee Schettler Rossi
LC In The Know Note
Chefs’ recipes. You want ‘em. Photographer Alan Batt’s got ‘em. Batt, who in our experience responds only when addressed as “Battman,” founded The Chef’s Connection as a means of flaunting the artistry of New York City’s finest, you know, chefs. To that same end, he’s also self-published a dozen stunning odes to food, truly spectacular testaments to chefs both renowned and still unknown. Take this recipe for a Thai specialty, found in Batt’s, er, Battman’s Soup book. It acquires its perfectly traditional tang from authentic ingredients in the hands of Thai chef Tanaporn Tangwibulchai. And here’s a little insidery New York restro scene gossip for those who want to be in the know. Ready? Thai Market. Those two words are what we’re hearing uttered in hushed, nay, reverential tones by those who know Thai food. It’s on the waaaay Upper West Side, and it’s where chef Tangwibulchai presides.
Tom Yum Goong Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 stalks lemongrass, green part and root trimmed, remaining section cut into 3 pieces
- 5 kaffir lime leaves, each torn into 4 pieces
- 2-inch piece galangal or ginger, sliced crosswise into 6 to 7 pieces
- 2 1/2 quarts (10 cups) cold water
- 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, left whole if small and roughly chopped if medium or large
- 2 tablespoons tamarind paste (you know, the block of brown tamarind found in Asian markets)
- 7 to 10 tamarind tendrils (optional)
- 3 to 15 bird’s eye chile peppers, smashed, to taste
- 2 tablespoons nam prik pao (roasted chile paste)
- 1/4 cup sliced button mushrooms
- 4 to 8 tablespoons fish sauce, or to taste
- 6 to 12 tablespoons lime juice, or to taste
- 1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves for garnish
Directions
- 1. In a large pot, bring the lemongrass, lime leaves, galangal or ginger, and water to a boil and then lower the heat to medium. Add the shrimp, tamarind paste, tamarind tendrils (if using), chile peppers, and nam prik pao and simmer just until the shrimp is cooked through.
- 2. Lower the heat to medium-low. Add the mushrooms, fish sauce, lime juice, and sugar, and stir to dissolve the sugar. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with cilantro, and serve.
Hungry for more? Chow down on these:
- Hot and Sour Thai Soup from Helen Jane
- Thai-Spiced Pumpkin Soup from 101 Cookbooks
- Congee | Jok Plaw from Leite's Culinaria
- Pho Bo | Vietnamese Rice Noodle Soup with Beef from Leite's Culinaria
Tom Yum Goong Soup Recipe © 2008 Alan Batt. Photo © 2008 Battman Studios. All rights reserved.
[Liz Tarpy] I give this soup high marks for the hot and sour flavor I love, and for a pretty quick turnaround. I used ginger in place of the galangal, but if lemongrass, Kaffir lime leaves, tamarind paste, or roasted chile paste are hard to come by, there are no good substitutes and therefore there’s not much point in making this otherwise delicious soup.
[Tamiko Lagerwaard] This soup, due mainly to the tamarind and lime, has a very tangy and slightly sour quality to it. It’s nicely balanced though from the saltiness of the fish sauce and the slight bit of sugar. The lemongrass and lime leaves didn’t have a strong presence in the dish, but undoubtedly added to the overall flavor. Since this is a very brothy soup, it’s really more of an appetizer than a meal. It comes together quickly and is very straightforward and simple to make once you’ve all of the ingredients, some of which may take a bit of searching to find. The only thing I didn’t care for was the use of raw mushrooms, which don’t have a chance to cook since they’re added at the end. I’d rather panfry the mushrooms first, or use dehydrated shiitakes in the future, which would add a nice earthiness to the soup. To make this a meal, I think the addition of some grated carrots, fresh spinach, and perhaps Asian dumplings would be welcome without distracting from the wonderful depth of the tangy, salty, and slightly spicy notes.
The use of raw mushrooms is traditional for this dish.
Many thanks for chiming in, Merryweather. The mushrooms in this recipe are stirred in just before the soup is ladled into bowls, so actually they are effectively uncooked. Maybe just barely warmed through.