Ingredients
- 2 stalks lemongrass
- 3-4 cups bone broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1-2" piece of ginger, minced
- chili pepper flakes to taste
- 3 makrut (keffir) lime leaves
- 1/2-3/4 cup mushrooms (oyster or shiitake) sliced
- sliced turnips or other vegetable of choice
- sliced carrots or other vegetable of choice
- opt. 8-14 raw shrimp peeled
- opt. 1-2 TBSP fish sauce
- 7-8 ounces coconut milk
- cilantro, roughly chopped as garnish
Instructions
Prepare the lemongrass: Finely mince the lower third of the stalk and keep the upper part whole.
In a deep cooking pot, pour the chicken stock and turn heat to medium-high. Add prepared lemongrass to the pot, including upper parts of the stalk you didn’t mince. Boil 5 to 6 minutes, or until fragrant
Reduce heat slightly to achieve a nice simmer. Add garlic, ginger, chili, lime leaves, mushrooms, and vegetables to broth. Continue simmering for another 5 minutes.
Add shrimp. Simmer 5 to 6 minutes, or until the shrimp are pink and plump.
Turn down the heat to low and add coconut milk and fish sauce. Taste-test and adjust as needed.
Serve in bowls with fresh cilantro sprinkled over as a garnish. Enjoy.
- To make it spicier, add a little more chili.
- Rather than salt, add fish sauce for a saltier soup.
- Add a squeeze of lime if it’s too salty.
- Make the soup richer or creamier by adding more coconut milk. This also fixes a soup that’s too spicy.
I just found out today the lime tree we have that wasn’t producing very good limes is a makrut (aka keffir) lime tree! So I picked some leaves and made Tom Yum soup for the first time. I have lots of lemongrass and ginger in my Maui garden too, I love going out to the garden to gather ingredients for a meal.