Thai shrimp soup with coconut milk – Tom Gung Gati Sod

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 200 g shrimp(s), approx. 16 – 18 cm, raw, fresh or frozen
• 10 g galangal, fresh or frozen
• 10 g ginger, fresh or frozen
• 1 pepper, red, fresh or frozen
• 2 small red chili peppers (cabe rawit merah)
• 4 m.-large kaffir lime leaves, fresh or frozen
• 2 stalks lemongrass, fresh
• 250 g coconut water (Asian shop, drinks)
• 4 tbsp fish sauce, light (e.g. kecap ikan “King Lobster”), alternatively soy sauce
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp chicken broth (strong bouillon)
• 1 pinch(s) of fine white sugar
• 200 ml creamy coconut milk (24%)
• 1 tbsp glutamate, highly purified (Aji-No-Moto)
• 2 tbsp coconut milk (sweet and sour coconut milk cubes for garnishing), see appendix
• n. B. flowers and leaves

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 20 minutes; Total time approx. 40 minutes

A spicy, exotic shrimp soup, the white counterpart to the red Tom Yang Gung.

Wash the fresh shrimp and the thawed frozen shrimp. Twist the heads off all the shrimp and then wash them all again. Cut each shrimp open down the back with small scissors down to the last segment (leave this segment and the tail if desired), peel off the chitin shell, removing the black intestine, and pull the body out of the last segment. Wash the fresh roots (galangal and ginger), peel them, and cut into very thin slices. Remove the tough root ends (eyes) from the galangal. Weigh the frozen shrimp and thaw them. Remove the stems from the chili peppers, wash them, slice them lengthwise, open them up, remove the seeds, and cut them crosswise into thin strands. Wash the small red chilies, cut them crosswise into thin rings, leaving the seeds and discarding the stems. Wash the kaffir lime leaves and use them whole. Wash the fresh lemongrass, remove the tough stem at the bottom, discard any brown or wilted leaves, and use only the white to light green parts. Cut these into approximately 8 cm long pieces. Remove the outer, green leaves if desired. Gently crush the bottom half of the pieces with a hammer, leaving the stem intact. Place all ingredients, from galangal to chicken broth, in a saucepan and simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes. Strain the broth and mix with the coconut milk. Do not boil again! Keep the leaves, lemongrass, and a few hot pepper strands, and discard the rest in the sieve with the organic waste. Steam the shrimp until pink and divide between soup bowls. Season the broth with salt and freshly ground white pepper and add to the shrimp. Garnish, serve warm, and enjoy. Note: The coconut milk will significantly reduce the spiciness of the chilies. If you prefer less heat, switch to green chilies and deseed the chilies. Appendix: Sweet and sour coconut milk cubes for garnishing, see: http://www.chefkoch.de/rezepte/3714561562040599/Suesssaure-Kokosmilchwuerfel-zum-Garnieren.html