Tom Yun Gung Soup

TOM YUM GUNG NOODLE SOUP

By Ying Bower

This classic Thai recipe serves four people

Ingredients For the soup: 1 cup of king prawn heads (optional - if you used fresh king prawns don’t throw away the heads as you can use them in the stock) 2.5ltr water ½ cup fresh galangal (if you can’t find fresh galangal you can get galangal paste instead) ½ cup fresh lemongrass ½ cup lime juice 4 tbsp fish sauce ½ cup tom yum paste (tom yum paste is available in most supermarkets) 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh chillis ¼ cup fresh lime leaves 2 pork or chicken stock cubes 1 tbsp sugar 1 can of good quality coconut milk For the filling: 1 cup of cooked pork mince 12 king prawns Finely chopped coriander and spring onion 1 pack of beansprouts 1 pack of noodles (you can use whichever noodles you prefer: I like to use instant noodles, as they are easy to get)

Method Bring the water to boil on a medium heat. Once the water is boiled add all the ingredients and leave the stock on a fast simmer for 10 minutes. Add the coconut milk and leave it on a fast simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes.

While you are waiting for the stock to cook, start preparing the filling. Cook the minced pork by frying in the pan with a small amount of oil: when the pork is cooked set it aside. Put water in

a deep pan on a medium heat and once it has boiled add the noodles: just follow the instructions on the noodle packet and once they are ready, set them aside.

When you finish cooking the noodles make sure to retain the cooking liquid once you have removed all the noodles. Add the king prawns to the pan and cook them for one to two minutes or until they’re cooked - make sure you don’t overcook them or the prawns will be chewy and they won’t taste as nice and fresh as they should. When the prawns are done use a slotted spoon to remove them and bring the water back to boiling point. Add the beansprouts to the pan, cook for one to two minutes so they retain some crunch then drain and rinse them and set them aside till the soup stock is ready.

When everything is cooked it’s time to serve up the noodle soup by putting a quarter of the noodles into each bowl, followed by a quarter of the cooked minced pork on top of the noodles, and equal amounts of prawns and beansprouts for each bow. Finally pour the stock over your filling, garnish with coriander and spring onion and enjoy your soup!

Normally in Thailand, we will have extra ingredients to season the soup such as chilli powder, fish sauce and lime juice. You can add any of these if you want your soup to be spicier, saltier or sourer, depending upon your taste.