Spicy Shrimp Tom Yum Soup

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Cheers to the New Year! It’s a bright, new start. A clean slate of routines. A time to reorganize, reprioritize, and have a do-over from all the holiday roasting and toasting we just did. January is National Soup Month and this Spicy Shrimp Tom Yum Soup is warming bowl of something fragrant and delicious. Filling and flavorful, it’s a less jarring way to start on those resolutions and proof that comfort food doesn’t need to be heavy to be satisfying. 

I used 2 tablespoons of Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base dissolved in 6 cups of hot water to make the stock in this recipe. I also used Thai Red Curry Paste in place of the Asian chili-garlic sauce, because I think it adds more a lot more flavor. The paste contains lemongrass, galangal, and kaffir lime, so it saves you some prep work and also allows you to buy fewer ingredients. If you can’t find lemongrass, check the produce area and see if your store sells lemongrass paste in tubes. Once opened, you can store it in your refrigerator and it will last several months. You can use frozen shrimp, straight from the bag, but give them a quick rinse under cold, running water to thaw a bit before adding them to the hot broth. Or, skip the shrimp if you like, and make this vegan by using vegetable broth and adding some cubes of extra firm tofu. Don’t peel the ginger for this recipe. It will be discarded, so just rinse and slice it. And, use what you have. I saw this as a perfect opportunity to use up all the white tops of the green onions that I had left over from the holiday:  a good way to reduce food waste and save money, and who couldn’t use a little of that right now? Note: this soup is spicy. If you like a milder broth, omit the chili peppers and just use the curry paste. It will still give you spiciness and some chili flavor, just not the same heat as the peppers.

Chase the chill off that cold January with this immunity boosting soup. It’s a healthy, economical way to feed your family and a great way to stick to those better eating resolutions. Even if it’s just for tonight’s dinner. 

Spicy Shrimp Tom Yum Soup

• 6 cups fish or seafood stock, or vegetable broth
• 1  3-4 inch piece fresh ginger, thinly sliced
• 2 stalks fresh lemongrass, trimmed and halved crosswise, then lengthwise, or 1 Tablespoonful Lemongrass stir-in paste
• 1 Tablespoon refined coconut oil 
• 8 ounces fresh crimini mushrooms, quartered
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 medium fresh Thai or serrano chili peppers, thinly sliced lengthwise 
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup coarsely chopped Roma tomatoes (about 2)
• 1 – 2 teaspoons Thai Red Curry Paste, or Asian chili-garlic sauce
• 1 pound fresh or frozen large shrimp in shells
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• lime wedges

Combine stock, ginger and lemongrass in a large Dutch oven and bring to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 20 minutes. Remove ginger and lemongrass with a slotted spoon and discard; transfer broth to a large bowl. 

Add oil to Dutch oven and warm over medium heat. Add mushrooms, onion, chili peppers, and garlic. Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in Thai curry paste; cook and stir 1 minute more. Add reserved stock and bring to a boil. Add shrimp and cook until shrimp are opaque, about 2-3 minutes. Top each serving with cilantro and serve with lime wedges. 

– per 2 cup serving: 181 calories, 4g fat, 9g carb, 2g fiber, 29g protein

– adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Soups and Stews