Recipe Tom Yam Khung Gai

[Yorky]

Ingredients

• 1 litre Tom yam stock*1
• 10 Prik kee noo chilies, slotted
• 2 Lemon grass stalks, sliced
• 6 slices Galangal
• 4 Kaffir lime leaves, torn
• 10 Small onions, whole (or shallots)
• 3 Coriander roots, crushed
• 300 gm Chicken breast, cubed 20 mm
• 100 gm Straw mushrooms, halved
• 4 Firm tomatoes, quartered
• 12 Spring onions, chopped 20 mm long
• 1 tsp Chili paste*2
• 2 Limes, juiced
• 1 tblsp Fish sauce
• 15 Freshwater prawns, peeled and deviened
• 3 Fresh red chilies, sliced
• 2 tblsp Fresh coriander leaf, picked

*1 Make a tom yam stock as follows: Boil the discarded prawn shells and heads in a litre of water with a pinch of salt and 3 sliced red Thai chilies, for about 30 minutes. Sieve the liquid. 2 x tom yam stock cubes could be substituted if available mixed with 1 litre of boiling water.

*2 Chili Paste: Blend together the following ingredients:
2 tsp Dried shrimp; 2 tsp Vegetable oil; 2 tsp Chili powder; 1 tsp Onion, finely chopped; 1 tsp Garlic, finely chopped; 1 tsp Tamarind juice; 1 tsp Sugar; 1 tsp Salt; 1 tsp Shrimp paste.
Add a chopped red chili (optional) and mix.

Method

Boil the tom yam stock over a medium high heat. Add the prik kee noo chilies, lemon grass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, small onions and coriander root. Bring back to the boil and cook for 10 minutes.

Add the chicken breast pieces and cook for a further 10 minutes.

Add the straw mushrooms and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Add the chili paste and cook for a further 2 minutes. Then add the chopped spring onions, lime juice, fish sauce and prawns and cook for 2 minutes or until the prawns are cooked.

Remove from the heat and stir in the fresh coriander leaf. Garnish with the sliced red chili.

Serve immediately.

 

[Yorky]

I ate some with a little (home made) bread as an accompaniment to dip up the soup. Not that the Thais would do that.

 

[Morning Glory]

That is such an attractive cooking dish. What is the function of the chimney in the middle?

 

[Yorky]

That is such an attractive cooking dish. What is the function of the chimney in the middle?

If we have the candles (but we've run out) they are lit in the base and tend to keep the tom yam hot. Tom yam is one of very few dishes that Thais eat hot. If you examine this old picture you may see the flame from the candle below.

[Edit: It's not a cooking dish; it's only for serving (and keeping warm). When I first came to Nakhorn Nowhere in '96 one of the local hotels served an exceptional red chicken curry in a similar, albeit earthenware, dish. Unfortunately that has ceased to be the practice.]

 

[buckytom]

Oh man, I love Tom Yum soup.
I have some Tom Yum soup paste that I often use just to make a quick broth to drink when I'm craving it. I'd like to try to make the entire thing from scratch.

Thanks, Yorky.

 

[Yorky]

I have some Tom Yum soup paste that I often use just to make a quick broth to drink when I'm craving it. I'd like to try to make the entire thing from scratch.

There are many ingredients and it's quite a lot of work. Today, I spent about 4 hours preparing and cooking it but that included many breaks for a beer (it has been 34 degC today) so overall, maybe 2 hours.There's sufficient for about 6 meals (although I doubt that it freezes well).

 

[Morning Glory]

If we have the candles (but we've run out) they are lit in the base and tend to keep the tom yam hot. Tom yam is one of very few dishes that Thais eat hot. If you examine this old picture you may see the flame from the candle below.

[Edit: It's not a cooking dish; it's only for serving (and keeping warm). When I first came to Nakhorn Nowhere in '96 one of the local hotels served an exceptional red chicken curry in a similar, albeit earthenware, dish. Unfortunately that has ceased to be the practice.]

Its a lovely thing. And so is your Tom Yam!

 

[buckytom]

The spelling difference is interesting. I've always seen it as yum, but you guys call it yam.

Of course it's not natively written in English, but I wonder if there are any differences besides the spelling.

 

[Rocklobster]

There are many ingredients and it's quite a lot of work. Today, I spent about 4 hours preparing and cooking it but that included many breaks for a beer (it has been 34 degC today) so overall, maybe 2 hours.There's sufficient for about 6 meals (although I doubt that it freezes well).

.I don't have the time to make it so whenever I see it on a menu, I order it...

 

[Yorky]

The spelling difference is interesting. I've always seen it as yum, but you guys call it yam.
Of course it's not natively written in English, but I wonder if there are any differences besides the spelling.

No difference whatsoever.

It's a question of pronunciation in Britain. As a northerner I would pronounce "up north" as "oop north" whereas a southerner would likely pronounce it the so-called posh way "ap north": The male words for thank you in Thai is normally written "khop khun khrup" but for a northerner it should be denoted as "khop khun khrap" in order for it to be pronounced correctly for a Thai to understand. Essentially it depends upon how you pronounce the vowel "u".

ต้มยำ is the Thai word.

 

[buckytom]

Understood, thanks.

Umm, oonderstood. Fanks.

This reminds me of an argument I heard once about the spelling of Hannukah. One group said it is spelled with a C (Channukah), the other without.

I chimed in that either spelling is correct since it was originally written in Hebrew. It depends on how good your accent is.

 

[Yorky]

Its a lovely thing. And so is your Tom Yam!

To become clean - I only put it into that serving receptacle for the photograph. It was returned to the pot after as it is much easier to serve from the pot.

 

[Morning Glory]

To become clean - I only put it into that serving receptacle for the photograph. It was returned to the pot after as it is much easier to serve from the pot.

Artistic license. I do things like that all the time in my photos. Probably more often than you do! Its called 'food styling' and is perfectly legit.

 

[The Late Night Gourmet]

Three Thai chili peppers, sliced open to unleash their full venom...that packs a punch, doesn't it? When it comes to Thai food, though, I totally agree that it's necessary to bring on the heat. This looks terrific. I'll have to make this sometime soon. But, unfortunately, the picture that was supposed to be in your third post (showing the lit candle) doesn't display anymore.

 

[Morning Glory]

Three Thai chili peppers, sliced open to unleash their full venom...that packs a punch, doesn't it? When it comes to Thai food, though, I totally agree that it's necessary to bring on the heat. This looks terrific. I'll have to make this sometime soon. But, unfortunately, the picture that was supposed to be in your third post (showing the lit candle) doesn't display anymore.

I can see it ok.