Tom Yum Koong (Shrimp)

This is my favorite soup of all. I learned in Thailand that Larb and Tom Yum soup are the country's favorite dishes and with good reason. Tom Yum soup is a chili paste based broth that is perfect for the colder days of winter. It will warm you up in no time and if it's toned down a bit, even kids will love it. Once you have the ingredients it's very simple to make. You will probably have to make a trip to an Asian food market to find the lemongrass, thai ginger and Tom Yum paste, but it's well worth the trip!

Ingredients:

2 quarts water
2T Tom Yum paste
3-4 green onions, chopped finely
1T garlic
1 stalk of lemongrass chopped finely
1T sugar
Juice of 3 limes
2T salt
1 can of mushrooms (I like to add enoki mushrooms as well)
1/2 lb. shrimp (heads on, heads off, your preference)
4 chopped shallots
1T fish sauce
2 T Galangal (thai ginger) or substitute with regular ginger
1 cup bean sprouts
Lime leaves (optional)

To make this soup it's as simple as adding everything to the water (except the bean sprouts) and bringing it to a quick boil. Then turn the heat down to low and simmer for an hour. I would recommend adding the shrimp a few minutes before serving and returning the soup to a boil for 2 minutes. That way the shrimp won't toughen up so much and they are easier to eat. If you plan to freeze the soup, don't add the shrimp at all. Just add the raw shrimp to each serving bowl and then pour the almost boiling soup over them and let them set for a moment or two. The soup cannot be frozen unless the shrimp are omitted and used for servings at the table.