Here is the recipe for the best-known Thai lemongrass and galangal soup: the tom yam.
This tom yam is called ‘nam khon’, it is a variation if the traditional recipe que j’aime également beaucoup.
The tom yam is a delicious, tangy broth flavoured with lemongrass, galanga and combava leaves. It can be used to cook fish, seafood or meat. You can even make a vegetarian tom yam.
Tom yam nam khon (creamy) or tom yam nam sai (clear broth)
There are several versions of tom yam. Le tom yam nam sai est la version traditionnelle. C’est un bouillon clair et léger, bien acidulé et pimenté. Je l’aime beaucoup préparé avec du poisson.
In this version of tom yam nam khon, we add chilli jam (nam prik pao) and unsweetened condensed milk. This makes the broth richer and creamier and I find it ideal with prawns or mixed seafood. It's also a delight in noodle soup.
A few tips to prepare tom yam soup
As the base of this soup is a stockyou can use a ready-made fish or poultry stock, but the best is to prepare a homemade court-bouillonI take whole fish or unpeeled prawns and use prawn shells and heads or fish heads and trimmings to make a stock. I've written the recipe below.
We add lots of aromatic herbs to the stock but we don't eat them. We generally put them aside when we eat.
🌶️ The lemongrass, galanga and combava leaves should not be simmered for too long, otherwise the soup will lose its freshness. Generally, I cook the galanga and lemongrass in the stock with the prawn shells, leave to simmer and then strain the stock. I then add lemongrass, galanga and combava again at the last minute to flavour the soup and add liveliness and freshness.
🌶️ Some people use coconut milk to add creaminess to their tom yam. However, in our region of Thailand, only unsweetened condensed milk is used. I've never tasted it with coconut milk so I can't compare. I'll leave it to you to decide what works best for you.
How to prepare the homemade prawn broth
Note: you can proceed in the same way with the fish heads and trimmings.
Place 1 litre of water in a saucepan with the prawn shells and heads. Add 3 crushed garlic cloves, a roughly chopped onion, a few slices of galanga, 2 crushed lemongrass sticks and 4-5 combava leaves. Bring to a boil and cook over a medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Strain to retain only the fragrant water.
Some tasty recipes with prawns
Tom yam nam khon, creamy version
Ingredients
- 1 litre of broth prawns, fish or vegetables
- 600 g of whole raw prawns
- 200-300 g of mushrooms straw mushrooms, shimeji, oyster or button mushrooms, as you wish
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 4 shallots
- 8 cm of galangal
- 3 racines coriander roots (or stems without leaves)
- 6-8 feuilles kaffir lime leaves
- 4 stalks of lemongrass
- 5-10 bird chillies as many as you like
- 3 small tomatoes
- 80 ml of fish sauce
- 60 ml of lime juice
- 40 g of nam prik pao (chili jam)
- 150 ml of unsweetened condensed milk non sucré
- coriander leaves chopped
Instructions
- Shell the prawns, keeping the tips of the tail to make them look pretty 🤩 (we use the shells and heads to prepare the stock - recipe in comments). Score the the prawns to remove the intestine. Rinse them well under running water and drain.
- Heat the broth and add :peeled and crushed garlic, peeled and crushed shallots, galanga brushed and cut into thin slices, chopped coriander roots, roughly cut kaffir lime leaves and as many chillies as you like (cut lengthways into 2). Add the crushed lemongrass sticks, cut into 2-3 cm pieces.
- Cook for 10 minutes to allow the condiments to flavour the broth. Add fish sauce and chopped mushrooms, and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add the prawns, quartered tomatoes, nam prik pao and unsweetened condensed milk. Once the prawns are cooked, turn off the heat.
- When off the heat, add lime juice and chopped coriander leaves.
- The soup should be sufficiently salty and nicely acidic. Add fish sauce or lemon juice if necessary.
- Serve with jasmine rice and a Thai omelette.
Notes
Place 1 litre of water in a saucepan with the prawn shells and heads. Add 3 crushed garlic cloves, a roughly chopped onion, a few slices of galanga, 2 crushed lemongrass sticks and 4-5 kaffir lime leaves. Bring to a boil and cook over a medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Strain to retain only the fragrant water.
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