I Need Tom Yam Goong

This hot and spicy Thai soup has been a favorite as starters when my friends and me have our monthly meeting. And of course our special rendezvous would be Sukho Thai restaurant located right at the heart of the city. It’s perfect especially this season of rains and high winds. The first time I savor the taste of tom yam goong was when my Thai classmate brought it on our closing day at school. Almost everybody in the class relished the hot and spicy soup. It’s actually Thai Shrimp Soup as the name suggests in English. Once, we requested our Thai friend to make this soup for us after our class and she did it as perfect as the first time we tasted it. Unfortunately, she has stopped seeing us for a while now so we can’t enjoy her Tom Yam Goong anymore.

I attempted to make this soup with the help of mixed ingredients in a sachet pack but it didn’t match the taste of that real one. What is more tempting with this soup is the aromatic lemon grass. It’s smell seems to get into the senses, making me warmed and relaxed. Among the ingredients that made Tom Yam Goong a delectable appetizer are the following:

shrimp/prawns, shelled and deveined, with shells reserved
water
garlic cloves (kratiem), minced
kaffir lime leaves (bai ma-good)
thin slices fresh or dried galangal (kha)
fish sauce (nam pla) (patis in Tagalog)
lemon grass/citronella (ta-krai)
shallots, sliced
cup sliced straw mushrooms
green Thai chili peppers (prik khee noo), optional
lime juice
black chili paste (nam prik pow)
chopped cilantro/coriander leaves (bai pak chee)

I’ve found the recipe here and maybe I will try to make this cos it’s absolutely perfect now when it’s cold and rainy…