🇹🇭 Thailand · Central Thailand
Tom yum nam saiThai clear tom yum
Tom yum in its clear form: a light, intense hot and sour broth of lemongrass, galangal, makrut lime leaves, chilies, fish sauce and lime, with prawns, mushrooms and tomato, and no milk.
Origin and history
Thai sources trace tom yum to river communities in central Thailand, with the earliest recorded references to similar soups from the reign of Rama V (texts of 1898 and 1908). Chef Chumpol Jangprai describes the traditional soup as clear, and says the thicker nam khon version came later, with chili paste, evaporated milk or coconut cream. Tom yum goong was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List in 2024.
Make it at home
- Makes
- 4 servings
- Total time
- 40 min
- Hands-on
- 25 min
Ingredients
- 500 g1.1 lb large prawns, whole, heads and shells on
- 1 tbsp neutral oil, for the shells
- 1.2 liters5 cups water, or half water, half light chicken stock
- 2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed, bruised and cut in 5 cm pieces
- 5 cm2 inches galangal (kha), cut in thin slices
- 8 makrut lime leaves, torn
- 4 shallots, halved and lightly smashed
- 5 bird's eye chilies (phrik kee nu), smashed; fewer for a milder soup
- 2 small tomatoes, cut in wedges
- 200 g7 oz straw mushrooms, halved; oyster mushrooms work
- 3 tbsp fish sauce, to taste
- 1 tsp sugar, optional
- 4 tbsp fresh lime juice, added off the heat
- coriander or culantro leaves, to garnish
Method
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1. Peel the prawns, leaving the tails on, and devein them. Keep the heads and shells.
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2. Heat the oil in a pot and stir-fry the heads and shells for 1 to 2 minutes until deep orange. Add the water, bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Strain and return the clear stock to the pot.
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3. Add the lemongrass, galangal, shallots and chilies to the stock, bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, so the broth takes on their flavour.
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4. Add the tomatoes and mushrooms and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.
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5. Add the prawns and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until they turn pink and curl.
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6. Season with the fish sauce (and sugar if you like), add the lime leaves and take the pot off the heat.
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7. Stir in the lime juice, taste, and adjust with more fish sauce for salt or lime for sourness. Garnish with coriander and serve right away with jasmine rice.
Notes
- Nam sai means 'clear broth'. It is the older, sharper form: Thai chef Chumpol Jangprai says the traditional broth was a clear soup that became richer with the fat from prawn heads. It has no milk, coconut milk or chili paste; the thick creamy form (nam khon) has its own page.
- Making the stock from the prawn heads and shells is what gives a clear broth its depth and sweetness; one source suggests shell-on prawns for a sweeter broth, and that heads of small prawns add little.
- Lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves are not eaten; leave them in the bowl or strain them out.
- The same broth is made with chicken (tom yum gai), fish or mixed seafood.
- Add the lime juice off the heat, as boiling it dulls the flavour. Eat the soup fresh: reheating makes it saltier and overcooks the prawns.
Adapted from The Woks of Life, Tom Yum Soup with Shrimp, Cooking with Nart, Tom Yum Goong, and Thailand Foundation, Tom Yum Kung: The Symbol of Thai Culinary Spirit.
At the festivals
No festival we list has printed it on a menu yet.