Thai Soup

Photo: flickr user avlxyz

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 shallot peeled, sliced

1 piece ginger - (2" long) sliced

2 fresh serrano chiles seeded, sliced

4 lemon grass stalks white part sliced

Juice and coarse zest of 1 lime

2 tablespoons fish sauce

8 cups chicken stock

1 pound medium/large shrimp shelled

pound enoki mushrooms

Salt to taste

Freshly-ground white pepper to taste

Cilantro sprigs for garnish

Preparation

Heat a wok and coat with vegetable oil. Add shallot and saute until it begins to turn brown. Add ginger, chilies, lemon grass and lime and saute until fragrant. Add fish sauce and scrape up any brown bits. Add chicken stock, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Through a fine sieve into a saucepan, strain out solids. Bring broth back to a boil and add shrimp and enoki mushrooms. Cook until shrimp turn pink. Season and drop cilantro sprigs in soup before serving.

This recipe yields 4 to 6 servings.