Tom yum soup done differently

Each country has its own version of popular cuisine, modified to suit the taste of her people. Us Bengalis, we have our own style of Thai food that native Thais would never recognize. There’s this thick soup we used to get at restaurants in Bangladesh which, in all honesty could never be called by its authentic name of “tom yum goong” meaning thai soup with prawns.

We Bengali’s take everything a little too far. Our spicy dishes are a bit spicier, and sweet dishes are a tad sweeter than the food you would get anywhere else in the world. This soup is spicier than an original tom yum but if you ask me just as flavorful, if not more . :D

So if you are not afraid of a little heat try making this Bengali tom yum.

Recipe:

6 cups water
6 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder

3 tablespoons tomato ketchup

1-3 tablespoons Sriracha chili sauce

4 stalks of lemon grass

¼ cup of chicken sliced thinly

¼ cup of medium shrimp (peeled, deveined)

3 Egg yolks

3 tablespoons corn flour

½ cup canned mushroom

1teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoons Vinegar

First peel off the first few outer layers from the lemon grass stalks and chop it into medium sized pieces. At this point feel free to smash the pieces with the back of your knife. This helps release the essential oils that flavor our food. These stalks although not eaten, impart a light lemony scent to the soup. 

Then separate the eggs and add a tablespoon of corn starch for each yolk. Make sure you save the whites for another dish.

And start mixing it up.

It’ll look crumbly in the beginning but have faith.

It’ll come together nicely into a thick paste.

Now, boil some water making sure it comes to a rolling boil.

And add all the chicken boullion powder. After a minute or two of boiling, add in lemon grass and the thin slices of chicken.

Now here comes the tricky part. If you add the yolk corn flour mixture directly into the hot broth you might end up with scrambled eggs as opposed to a thick creamy soup. Which I guess wouldn't taste bad, but we don’t want that for this recipe.

Take a ladel/ spoonful of the hot liquid and slowly pour it onto the egg paste and stir vigorously. 

Add another ladelful and stir again.

Pour the warm egg mixture into the broth mixture. Give it a quick stir and you'll get a smooth creamy consistency.

Add in the shrimp, ketchup, chili sauce, vinegar, sugar and salt and your soup will get a pretty orange hue. Make sure not to cook the soup for too long otherwise the shrimp will turn rubbery.

Sprinkle generous amounts of chopped cilantro and you have Bengali-Thai soup. Enjoy!! :)