This became my favorite lunch soup this winter, although arguably it’s a summer soup with its creamy coconut base and gently poached shrimp, not to mention its intense cilantro essence. (Cilantro haters will run screaming from your kitchen when you make this soup — my two loathers could never be found when this was on the stove.) However, with a half cup of cream stirred in, along with a dollop of tom yum paste and a tablespoon of fresh-chopped fiery bird’s eye chilis, it soothes on the coldest blustery days of December. I know, I made plenty of it during the Christmas season.
I discovered the genesis for this recipe in a delightful book I’d purchased awhile ago, Roast Chicken and Other Stories by Simon Hopkinson. His version contains no shrimp, and I’ve made so few changes to this gem of a recipe that I cannot take an ounce of credit for this soup.
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Cilantro, Shrimp, and Coconut Soup
Adapted from Roast Chicken and Other Stories by Simon Hopkinson
2 cups chicken broth (preferably homemade, but organic canned/boxed broth will do)
1 heaping teaspoon tom yum paste (this is a Thai sweet-and-sour paste that you can find in any well-stocked Asian market. If you can’t find it, don’t worry — it’s not critical to the dish)
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger root
1 crushed garlic clove
2 stalks lemon grass, chopped
2 birds eye chilis, finely chopped (actually, I’m not sure if the chilis I buy/use are actually bird’s eyes — they’re tiny, about an inch long, and red, and I buy them at the local Asian market)
5 green onions, white parts only, chopped
1 big bunch of fresh cilantro; cut the stems off the bunch and chop finely, and reserve the leaves for garnish
1 can reduced fat coconut milk (do not confuse with coconut *cream*, which is used in pina coladas and contains a bunch of sugar)
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce (nam pla), which can be found in Asian markets or a well-stocked supermarket
1 pound 25-32 ct. fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined (you can also use thawed frozen shrimp)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1. In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the chicken broth, tom yum paste, ginger, garlic, lemon grass, chilis, and green onions over medium heat. Let simmer for 30 minutes, keeping an eye on the heat under the pan. (I frequently have to turn it to low to prevent the soup from boiling.)
2. Strain the soup into a heat-proof bowl, discard the aromatics, then return the broth to the saucepan. Add the chopped cilantro stems, coconut milk, lime juice, and fish sauce. Simmer for five minutes, then strain the broth into the heat-proof bowl, discard the stems, and return the broth to the saucepan.
3. Add the shrimp to the broth and cook over medium heat for 4 to 6 minutes, until the shrimp are pink and cooked through. Stir in the cream. Ladle into bowls and top each bowl with 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves.
