Description
A vibrant and aromatic Thai Tom Yum Soup featuring a flavorful broth infused with lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, galangal, and bird’s eye chiles. This soup combines tender mushrooms, juicy tomatoes, and protein options of shrimp or tofu, finished with fresh lime juice and garnished with cilantro and green onions for a perfect balance of spicy, sour, and savory flavors.
Ingredients
Scale
Broth and Aromatics
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- 2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed and smashed
- 4 kaffir lime leaves, torn
- 3 slices galangal or ginger
- 2 Thai bird’s eye chiles, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 small onion, sliced
Vegetables
- 7 oz mushrooms, sliced
- 2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges
Protein
- 10 oz shrimp, peeled and deveined or tofu for vegetarian option
Seasonings
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce or soy sauce for vegetarian
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon chili paste, optional
Garnishes and Serving
- Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish
- 2 green onions, sliced
- Lime wedges for serving
Instructions
- Infuse the broth: In a medium pot, bring chicken or vegetable stock to a gentle boil. Add lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, galangal or ginger, bird’s eye chiles, smashed garlic, and sliced onion. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes to thoroughly infuse the flavors into the broth.
- Cook vegetables: Add the sliced mushrooms and tomato wedges to the infused broth. Continue simmering for 5 minutes until the mushrooms become tender and the tomatoes slightly soften, releasing their juices into the soup.
- Add protein: Stir in the peeled and deveined shrimp or tofu. Simmer gently just until the shrimp turn pink and are cooked through, about 2 to 3 minutes, or until the tofu is heated thoroughly.
- Season the soup: Remove the soup from heat and stir in fish sauce (or soy sauce for vegetarian), fresh lime juice, sugar, and optional chili paste. Taste and adjust seasoning to achieve the desired balance of saltiness, sourness, and spice.
- Serve: Ladle the hot soup into bowls and garnish with fresh cilantro leaves and sliced green onions. Serve immediately with lime wedges on the side for extra tartness if desired.
Notes
- For a vegetarian version, replace shrimp with firm tofu and use vegetable stock and soy sauce instead of fish sauce.
- If galangal is unavailable, fresh ginger is a suitable substitute that will give a similar warming flavor.
- Adjust the number of bird’s eye chiles to control the soup’s spiciness according to your preference.
- Using fresh lime juice at the end preserves its bright citrus flavor.
- Do not overcook the shrimp; it should just turn pink and be tender.
