Lawan's Heavenly Shrimp Soup
 |
Shrimp, heads and shells on
Shallots
Garlic
Lemon grass
Galanga root
Tamarind liquid
Red and green Thai hot chili peppers
Kaffir lime leaves
Thai basil |
Make the tamarind liquid in advance.
Clean the shrimp, reserving the heads and shells, which you can boil for
about 5 minutes in just enough water to cover to make a shrimp stock. For
3/4 to 1 lb. shrimp, use a cup or two of water. Fish out the shells and
heads. Add a couple of cups of the tamarind liquid, Thai
peppers (cut up maybe 3-4 red and 1-2 green chilis) and 2-4 Kaffir
lime leaves, and boil them on medium temperature while you prepare the other
ingredients.
Very finely slice and mince the lemon grass (maybe two 4-inch pieces),
a piece of galanga root (I think Lawan calls this "cha" or "gha") about
the size of a walnut, 2-3 shallots and a couple of large cloves of garlic.
Saute the minced shallots, lemon grass, galanga and garlic on low heat in
a small amount of oil. I use peanut oil, but Lawan uses olive oil. When
the shallots are transparent, you can add the soup and the shrimp. Cook
just a couple of minutes so the shrimp is just done and slightly crisp.
Throw in the Thai basil when you shut off the heat. Serve. You can add rice
noodles (a little, cooked separately) if you want.