Tom Yum Koong Soup

Absolutely wonderful- complex and fragrant, and quite easy to make! I made only a few modifications, and with or without my suggestions, this recipe will result in a really interesting mix of hot, sour, and citrus flavors that is guaranteed to bring you compliments. I highly recommend that you take the time to look for the ingredients and not make substitutions. But, if you can't find galangal, add 2-3 teaspoons of minced ginger, and if you can't find kaffir lime leaves use an equal amount of lime zest. If you have to make substitutions, it's a very good idea to include the tom yum soup paste, which this recipe suggests is optional. That paste contains galangal, tamarind, dried shrimp, fennel, and peanut. It's usually sold in small jars and can be found near soy and Szechuan sauces. Now for my modifications: First, I used 4 cups of vegetable stock instead of 4 cups of water. Second, I modified the chilis to lessen the heat and the bite-- I did this by halving the amount of chili paste and by delaying the addition of the whole chilis until the very end, along with the shrimp and the mushrooms. Third, although the recipe does not indicate whast kind of mushrooms to use, I recommend either straw mushrooms or oyster mushrooms. Fourth, I take out the kaffir lime leaves and the lemon grass before serving because they aren't pleasant to eat. Fifth, I add a fresh kaffir leaf to each bowl for garnish.

I made this hours ago, and my lips are still tingling! I am SO happy to have found this recipe. I made a 30 mile round trip to get all the ingredients from the grocers which is attached to our fave Thai restaurant, and all I can say is that is was totally worth the time and effort. I would not recommend making this with substitutions - dried lemon grass, ginger, lime zest, etc are simply nowhere near as good as the real thing. Also, the lemon grass I buy is very thick and woody, so I just strip off the outer layers and cut it in half so that I can easily pick it out when it is done cooking (I cannot imagine actually eating it). Similarly, make sure you pick out the galangal and lime leaves after it's done cooking (sorry if I am stating the obvious, but some people might not know). Oh, and I used canned straw mushrooms because that's what the restaurant uses. Apart from adding a little more fish sauce, and also a shrimp bouillon cube, I made this as written. I can hardly believe it's homemade! Thank you SO much, Michelle!

I love Tom Yum soup but not as much as the BF does. So this has been a fun adventure. The only reason I don't give this 5 stars is I have made it 3 times and it still doesn't taste like my fav. restaurant’s. I'm getting closer. The first time we simply couldn't find some of the ingredients. The kaffir lime leaves, galangal, chile padi (bird's eye chiles), and chile PASTE were so hard to find. And unlike what some reviewers have said and other places online the kaffir leaves make a difference, the zest isn't quite the same. The opposite is true with galangal I read everywhere that it had a truly unique flavor you can't quite get from anything else. What a headache. Its literally Thai ginger. A few tips. 4 chiles are too much, and I LOVE spicy food (then again I cut mine in half). DO NOT TRY TO FIND THESE AT YOUR LOCAL ALL IN ONE FOOD STORE GO TO AN ASIAN MARKET THE FIRST TIME.

This is an excellent soup but I made a few modifications also. First, I could not see myself eating anything made out of boiled shimp heads! I totally left the shrimp out and with the tom yum soup paste it still had a great flavor. My favorite Thai restaurant serves this with vegetables so I added them to mine also. I added a cut up tomato, baby corn, red and yellow sliced sweet pepper, bok choy and a little broccoli. Everyone that has this soup loves it!!! Thanks for the great recipe Michelle!

SUPERB!!! This is an old reliable one in my recipe arsenal. It's labor-intensive, but the result is fantastic. I substitute slices of ginger for the galangal and lime zest for the kaffir lime leaves. I use small serrano chilies for the chili padi -- I think they're close relatives in the chili family. I didn't expect it, but when the shrimp broth is simmering with the other ingredients, it makes the kitchen smell incredibly FRAGRANT! This is a cherished recipe for me.

This is absolutely delicious. It is wonderfully spicy and the contrasting textures are great. Because the recipe didn't specify a mushroom type I used fresh straw mushrooms which I got at the local Asian store. I'm not sure if they have these at a typical market? I also cooked some Asian noodles and added them to each serving to make the soup more into a meal. In addition I added some more vegetables like baby corn, a little sliced napa cabbage and carrots. As others have noted putting the shrimp in 10 minutes before finishing will turn them into rubber. I actually threw them in as I finished/turned the heat off. The soup is so hot that it cooks them perfectly. I couldn't find kaffir lime leaves but I found a website saying that lime zest is pretty close(1 tablespoon lime zest = 6 kaffir lime leaves). Also don't skip on the fresh cilantro (or coriander) at the end, it adds great contrast.Hope this helps. Enjoy. Thanks Michelle for the recipe!

My family and I must not like this type of soup, because this was way too spicy (and we love spicy).

This was a delicious recipe. I had it at a Thai restaurant, and had to come home and duplicate it! I searched far and wide for the kaffir lime leaves, galangal and chili padi - and found them at an asian market. They all freeze well, so I have ingredients for the future. I am a vegetarian, so I used vegetable broth, and left out the shrimp. This recipe has such a nice mix of spices. I'll definatly make it again.

Wow! My family loved this recipe! Absolutely delicious. I omitted the chiles and went easy on the chili paste as I am not big on really spicy food. I recommend adding a little spice at a time and tasting to ensure it doesn't get too spicy.

Just made this tonight. My hubby and I loved it. Just like in Tai restaurants. Make sure you leave the soup to simmer to get the flavour out of the spices.

This is by far my favorite recipe on this site and I have made it many times. I like using fresh mushrooms, but some of the canned ones are very good too, you have to experiment with the brands (I can't remember which are good). The changes I've gradually made are as follows: I add a chopped tomato and a chopped purple onion. I add the onions with the lemon grass, stock, etc. I can't even describe how tasty the onions become after boiling in the broth. I then add the mushrooms and tomatoes and I add fresh chopped cilantro and boil those for four minutes, then add the shrimp and boil for another six minutes. Then I take out all the inedible parts before serving, i.e. the galangal, lime leaves, and lemon grass. I like my food extra spicy so I add extra peppers and chop them up and I quadruple the amount of chili paste. I find the soup is better without the tom yum soup paste as it adds a sodium flavor that I don't like. It's also good to add a little extra water with the extra ingredients so you end up with more of the delicious broth.

This was great and authentic tasting. I doubled the lemongrass and used powdered galangal since I could not find fresh. I may have added too many vegetable chunks so next time I will reduce so there is more delicious soup. Really great and spicy. Make sure you have some tissues handy.

An excellent recipe for a favorite soup. It was hard to find some of the ingredients, so I had to replace lime rind with the kaffir leaves and one habanero pepper for the bird's eye peppers.

Used lime zest instead of kaffir lime leaves, frozen ginger instead of galangal, palm sugar instead of regular white sugar, and added bamboo shoots (sliced) and the bulb of a lemongrass. It tasted just like the Tom Yum from my old fave Thai restaurant, Tamada, that no longer exists!!

This soup is amazing! I was looking for a recipe like this after having this soup at a Thai restaurant. The first time I made this recipe, it turned out great but making the broth from scratch is expensive and time consuming. I used fish stock the second time around (the broth made from dissolving a cube into hot water) in combination with the fish sauce and it tasted exactly the same - except it took a lot less time! I threw in the shrimp without shells later on. I would recommend cooking the shrimp for a little less time than the recipe recommends if you don't want them to come out rubbery! I also added Thai red curry paste instead of the Tom yum soup paste that I couldn't find. This recipe is definitely a keeper in my house.

I missed the part about shrimp heads!!....so I had to make do with boiling their shells first? I must have boiled it way too long, b/c most of my water was gone. So I probably added another 3 or 4 cups of water. I doubled the Tom Yum paste and the chili paste (I has something called garlic chili sauce). I just used 8 ounces of regular white mushrooms...plus added a can/jar of baby corn (comes in a slightly sweet pickled liquid that I added too)....I used 3 chilis....I used 6 each of the galangal slices and lime leaves next time...carrots might be a nice touch and some bamboo shoots too!! Loved it though!!

This is an absolutely wonderful recipe for Tom Yum! I had been previously used to making it from a paste and I assure you I will never go back to that again. This recipe was absolutely worth the work - everyone loved the lovely soup. It might be a good idea to chuck in the prawns towards the end as overcooked prawns have an awful rubbery taste. Other than that, will definitely make again!

I work at an authentic Loaian resturant and we serve this soup. My boyfriend and I agree that it is delicious and authentic!

Fantastic!! My boyfriend and I order this dish at every thai restaurant we go to, and this was spot on. I used one cup of chicken broth, 1 cup of veggie broth, and 2 of water. Thank you!

Hot and Spicy!!!! thanks for the description about the ingredients. it saved me a lot of trouble when shopping. we just adore Thai food and this is definately a keeper. I added a few more chilies, by the way.

A can of coconut milk saved this for me. But, don't care for this soup style. It had too much "zing" and not enough "comfort". I thought I'd had Tom Yum Soup before in a restaurant and enjoyed it. Maybe the "Koong" makes it different. Or maybe I am just not a fan.

With the recent October snow behind us and power back on, we wanted something exotic and Tom Yum came to mind. This recipe is very good. We have an Asian foodstore in nearby Nashua and the woman there was very helpful in getting us everything we needed. Enjoyed the preparation, which was easy. After adding all ingredients and allowing for a nice simmer, the smell alone was intoxicating. Bowls were filled and we floated cilantro on top. Wow! It was fantastic. We thoroughly enjoyed this soup. This will be a must-have for the coming NH winter. Thank you for a great recipe!

Honestly, once you get the ingredients, it's so easy and truly fabulous! Tastes just like in the restaurant. I recommend using fresh mushrooms only because the canned ones we bought had a distinctive and unpleasant flavor.

I LOVE this recipe. I drove 45 mins each way to get the ingredients but it was well worth it. It is BETTER than the restaurants version where I tried it. I don't ever really review things so this is a first.. the flavor was wonderful. I tried doubling it but didn't end up with enough water at the end.. glad I doubled the water initially. It was also spicy so if you want less spice, use less chilis or leave the seeds out... but overall omg. I couldnt find the birds eye chilis so I went with a thai chili instead... still amazing. Definitely my new favorite.

I recently went to Bangkok and this is almost exactly what I had at several restaurants. I have a local Asian market and am able to find all the ingredients. I suspect if all you can find is the Tom Yum paste...that would be the most important one. Lemon Grass is important as well. The lime and cilantro is a nice touch for each serving. I loved this recipe/soup and it makes me miss Thailand. No doubt this is authentic.

Excellent recipe!! I also added some diced fresh tomatoes and diced pineapple which added some yummy texture and sweetness to the finished product.

It was okay. I had to double the kaffir leaves and the lemongrass to give it any semblance of authenticity.

Very much like you get in Thailand, but 5min max is heaps for cooking the prawns and I don't think you need canned mushrooms I use extra fresh ones. If you replace the prawns with 300 grams chicken fillets cut into bite sized pieces you have -- Tom Yam Gai

Very good. I didnt have all the ingredients as I'm sure it would have been much better.

Really delicious! It's almost identical to the prawn hot and sour soup I get at a local Thai restaurant. In my case, I found that 4 cups of water wasn't nearly enough to accommodate all of the ingredients (especially 12 mushrooms) and the shrimp came out overcooked after being in there for 10 minutes; next time, I will use jumbo shrimp or prawns (since they shrink a lot) and cook them for 5-7 minutes instead of 10. I added 4 extra cups of water and a 1/2 tbsp extra tom yum paste to add volume, and it still tasted delicious. I also added baby corn, which my local restaurant puts in their soup. Thanks for sharing the recipe!

fantastic!

Very good! We used vegetable stock and tofu instead of the shrimp for a vegetarian version and left out the fish sauce.

Fantasticly easy! I made some revisions as I'm not a shrimp eater. In order to make the stock I combined 2 chicken thighs and a broken-up heart of celery. Once everything was ready to consume, I dumped in a can of coconut milk and dinner was served. Thanks for such a great base recipe.

Finally!! An accurate, restaurant quality Tom Yum Soup!! I followed the recipe almost exact except for the lemon grass...I purchased that in a glass bottle. I also agree with another reviewer that stated you should not skip the Tom Yum Paste. I will definitely have to tweek this recipe to match my favorite restaurants Tom yum shrimp soup...But with this recipe I am sure I have all the ingredients and will be successful in finally being able to make my absolute favorite soup on Earth!!! Thank you to the recipe writer!!

Delicious. Added some fresh cilantro when I added the lime, etc to the broth.

This was really good but it was waaaay too hot for our tastes. And I only added 1 bird eye chili! Had no trouble finding all of the Asian ingredients. On the shopkeeper's recommendation, I used a bouillon type cube that I got at the Asian market instead of the soup paste. Maybe that added heat to the dish too. In any case, except for the heat, the flavor was very good. I looooooved the kaffir lime leaves and definitely would not ever substitute them in any Asian recipe I make in the future. They are unique! I didn't have fresh mushrooms so I used all canned shitakes, and I also added some dried black fungus which, even when reconstituted, added a very pleasant crunch to the soupl I like my soup zippy so I added quite a bit more lime juice than called for. Came out great!

Excellent! We made a few modifications: we added way more fresh mushrooms (double or more) but we did not use the canned ones, used a few more Kaffir leaves, used a tablespoon of frozen lemon grass instead of the dried stocks and we added some thinly sliced chicken. Also, to make things a bit easier, we just boiled the water and then added everything to it. Tasted fantastic.

just like moms

Marvelous soup; spicy and balanced. I used clam juice, onions, 1 tsp. tamarine & red curry paste. So simple, yet complex flavors!

Amazing recipe! Tom Yum is my all-time favorite soup and this recipe nails it. I'll be making this over and over again. Instead of making the shrip stock I added one cube shrimp buillon and one cube veggie bullion. Ended up using over 5 cups of water and added some fresh chopped veggies and shrimp. yum yum yum.

Very Authentic. It serves a bit less then 5 people in my opinion. My husband and I can easily finish the "5" servings between us two.

This recipe is absolutely a staple in my house. I have been cooking this recipe for about a year now almost two times a week. (sometimes more!) I am addicted! I can only find the kafir lime leaves online so I substitute with 4 juiced limes making it absolutely delicious! I also throw in a lot of chilies and chile sauce for extra hotness!!! The Tom Yum paste is a also a must... it makes it authentic! This recipe is better than any Tum Yum soup I have had in a restaurant!

I hadn't had this since my trip to thailand last year and this recipe tasted pretty authentic. I substituted the water for chicken stock and did notice that it was already spicy before adding the thai bird chiles so I only added 2 instead of 4 and waited until the end to add them like another reviewer suggested. Very good! I will save this recipe and make it again.

EXOTIC!EASY! I loved this even before the coconut milk was added. The C.milk gave it the complex flavor. Enjoyable either way. I ruined it a bit by pureeing the lemongrass to give it a stronger flavor. BIG MISTAKE! You're constantly spitting out unchewable hairs and scales. It should be removed from soup before serving. I suggest pureeing, and wrapping in cheese cloth. LESSON: "follow the recipe".Thanks for the great recipe. I feel so accomplished now.

Excellent!!! This is the first time I successfully duplicated Thai food at home. I recommend using the tom yum soup paste. Thanks for sharing this recipe.

This is a must-try. Seriously. Tasted exactly like it came from my favorite Thai restaurant. Sure, it required a special trip to the Asian supermarket and it was a bit spendy picking up all the special ingredients - who knew kaffir lime leaves were $80 a pound?! - but now I can whip this up whenever I get the craving. Like other reviewers said, do NOT substitute if you can help it. You will spend more but it will be worth it - you won't be sitting there thinking it's missing something. I am absolutely sure the tom yum paste made all the difference - it should not be denoted as optional.

Great soup! It is a light soup so you will want to eat something along with this if making for dinner. Also, I got the Tom Yum paste but it really bothers me that you cannot get it w/o MSG in the paste. This is very unhealthy. Next time I'll try to make it w/o the paste and hopefully will be good. Also start with peeled, cleaned shrimp as this process is time consuming.

Absolutely delicious, I used fresh mushrooms and added them towards the end of cooking. I also added the Tom Yum Soup paste and it really is a must. I doubled the chile paste as we like it very spicy and after that it was perfect. Thank you so much for sharing.

Whenever I go to a Thai’s restaurant, I always order Tom Yum Koong. I have tried to cook this soup at home, but it never came out right! However, last weekend, I found this recipe and tried it! Oh my god! To my surprised, I cooked the best Tom Yum Koong ever!!! It is sweet, sour, perfectly spicy, and authentic just as at my favorite Thai’s restaurant! This will be my all time favorite recipe from for sure! I am going to add a twist to it by adding seafood to see if it is still good! Thank you for a wonderful authentic recipe! It’s simply the BEST! It there was a 6 stars, I would give it a 6 stars! lol

Just made this soup tonight..It was great. My face was red and my sinuses were working well by the time I was done :) wasn't enough broth though. I'm going to add more water next time.

Perfect recipe for the Tom Yum soup. The shrimp came out a bit rubbery so maybe the recipe needs to be tweaked a bit. Otherwise, a great recipe. Super easy to make!

Definately 5 stars, I don't care for shrip so I used diced chicken breast instead, couldn't find kaffir lime leaves so I zested my limes, and I couldn't find sliced galangal, so I didn't worry about that. Also, I didn't have chili paste but I did use Tom Yum Soup Paste. Was VERY delicious! My oldest daughter loved it and wants it again tonight!

Loved it. Cooked it without remembering to look at reviews but it still came out great! I used mirepoix (diced onion, carrots and celery) to fill it out, a habit I have from making restaurant soups, and it was really hardy. I used a whole largish onion and similar amounts of carrot and celery, but will actually make half as much next time so as not to make it quite so hardy. I cooked the vegetables in the soup pot with salt and pepper, adding the garlic, ginger, meat and red chiles just before adding stock (instead of water). I didn't have lime leaves, but used a little tom yum paste i had from a noodle soup kit that had been around my kitchen forever. I forgot to add fish sauce, but to no ill effect, we just added a little salt when we served it over a small ball of rice. Went light on peppers when making it, and added sambal (chili garlic sauce) individually for flavor and kick. I would say the tom-yum paste would be the easy way to make this soup, and galangal and kaffir lime leaves is the right way. I will likely use both next time. Add coconut milk just before serving to turn this Tom Yum into Tom Ka!

I bought a package of Tom Yum soup mix and used this recipe to help me flush out the rather simple and bland sounding directions. My soup turned out almost exactly as it tastes at my favourite Viet-Thai restaurant! Thought I would be in for quite an ordeal, as the soup looks pretty complex and has a lot of exotic ingredients, but it was very easy and I was able to find everything at the local Asian market. I used a whole packet of soup paste and my favourite additions to this soup are shrimp, fried tofu and Thai eggplant (which look like tiny watermelons). Thanks for the recipe!

This so EXCELLENT, This is the same soup I oredered at our Finest Royal Thai Cusine, a 10 Star Thai restaurant, with master chefs from all over Thailand, and China. This Soup has won numerous awards in Thai Fine dining. I love this soup it's spicy and the flavors are EXPLODING IN YOUR MOUTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So delicious!!

The only alteration I did was add a tsp of dried shrimp paste. Other than that it was perfect.

My husband and I just went to Thailand and I have to say that even without the sounds of Bangkok around me this soup took me back there!! It was absolutely splendid!! I don't think any 2 Tom Yum's are the same since I had it at a few different restaurants and each varied a little but if I can make such a good one in my own kitchen life is great!!

I couldn't find several of the ingridients and I added seafood stock (more liquid than called for) but it came out great and it was a fun change of pace.

Didn't really care for this soup. We felt the spicyness was all right, but there was too much lemon/sour flavor. Maybe because I'm just not big on sour. Shrimps tasted overcooked. I think they really are only supposed to be boiled for a couple of minutes.

This soup is deliciously spicy and tangy. I went to the Asian market to find the ingredients and found everything I needed except for the Kaffir lime leaves and chile padi. I used lime zest and Thai chilies instead. I could not stomach making a broth out of shrimp heads and shells, so I used chicken broth. Vegetable broth would also work well. The recipe does not mention that galangal and lemon grass are not meant to be eaten. They have a tree bark texture, but they go into the soup for flavor. Next time I make this soup I will not cut the lemon grass into small "match stick" sized pieces because it made them very hard to remove from the soup before serving. I may put them into a tea bag like sack to get the flavor and make removing them more simple. Also, put the shrimp into the soup after it's done cooking and after you remove it from the heat. They cook in about 45 seconds. Lastly, I added chopped cabbage and diced carrots to give the soup more substance as a meal. It was just enough for 3 people.

this recipe is amazing! i adjusted the ingredients to about 12 servings so i'll have an easy reheat lunch, and subbed chicken rather than shrimp (still following suit and boiling the bones in the water for 20 mins, and letting rest for 20 mins for enhanced flavor). i also ran around chicago and found some great asian markets which carry lime leaves (make sure to tear them instead of chopping), lemon grass (after you trim them smack it with the knife handle moderately to release flavor), and tom yum soup paste. i forgot the chili peppers so added a smidge more chili paste for a fair kick. i also strained out the lemon grass, lime leaves, and galangal instead of having to do it each time i eat.

This soup was absolutely uh-mazing! the only change I made was adding an extra tablespoon of tom yum paste and had it served with rice. It's so easy and fast to make...in fact it only took me 20 minutes! Next time I will add mussels to the recipe since my family devoured the shrimp so quickly!

WOW WOW WOW!!! My hubby and I love our local Thai restaurant's Tom Yum soup and this is as good or if not better than that. I could not find the galangal and kaffir leaves at the Asian market store i went to so substituted ginger and lime zest.As a result i did add the tom yum paste. I ommited the chiles but it still came out rather spicy with just the paste. I did add green and red sliced peppers and sliced baby corn to make it more of a meal...however this did make the stock rather minimal...so next time i will have to adjust the recipe. This is a definite keeper :)

I have used this recipe 4 or 5 times in the past year. This is a must do soup for anyone with a cold or sinus infection. The lemongrass, lime, ginger and chili pepper are a kick cold killer combo. I fell in love with this soup at a nearby Thai restaurant. I am never one to follow a recipe . . . but I kinda follow the basics on this one. My shrimp stock was made only from the tails of raw shrimp. I used regular ginger instead of galangal. I added cherry tomatoes just like they did at the restaurant. Another time I added spinach. The last time I made this I added turmeric, garlic and sweet potatoes to the soup. The basic stock recipe here is awesome . . . shrimp shells, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, chili pepper . . . an exotic pick me up and virus killer.

This was great! Close to the dish served at a local five star Thai Restaurant. Thank you!

thanks so much for this recipe. I've been making this recipe for several years now and have been told that its better than many restaurants soup. thanks so much.

Ahhh... great soup!!! Used about 6 spoons of chile sauce and I love it!!! We usually buy this product for about 8.00 dollars a pint... but I must say this recipe is extremely similar to what we buy... Extremely hot and great!!!!!!!!

Fabulous! Nice it tells how to make the shrimp broth too.

Turned out a bit spicier than expected. But was great!!

This is soooo good! I highly recommend the soup to others. I added a half of baked chicken, breaking it up into little bits to add instead of shrimp. I still used the shrimp shells for the stock because it tastes better with the shrimp stock (I tried it with chicken stock). I also added garbonzo beans, celery and cut carrots for my veggies. I left out the mushrooms and the root since I never located it anywhere. It was yummy!

My daughter was obsessed with a specific Thai restaurant in Los angeles that served this soup. Since moving 90 miles away we could only get it for her once in a blue moon. I really thought I could not replicate the taste of their soup but with this recipe, I got the biggest hug and "thank u mommy!" from my daughter. I don't know where to get shrimp heads from so I buy raw shelled shrimp and boil them til cooked with a little salt, lime, and one small piece of lemon grass. I strain the shrimp and use that shrimp water to continue boiling the shells as my broth. I blend a couple shrimps too for extra flavor. I keep the shrimps in the fridge and add them when the soup is served individually. That makes the shrimp taste perfect and not rubbery. I also boil all the other ingredients for double the time (except mushrooms) and I leave the Tom yum paste and chili paste on the table instead of adding to the soup so we have a clear soup and everyone can choose the amount they like added. I have made this 3 times since I found an Asian market that carried everything. Most of the items like then chili pods, lemon grass and leaves are sold in large packets so I freeze the extras for later use. I also added king crab and or snow crab legs the last five minutes of cooking. This recipe is a keeper. Thanks

I'm sure this is great as presented, and I've been working on Tom Yum soup recipes for years and find this to be the most authentic recipe online! However, based on my preferences I made the following changes: I used a LOW SODIUM chicken stock. I boiled the shrimp in 3 cups of chicken stock for about 3 minutes (or until they just start to turn pink) and then pulled them out, let them cool down and then PEELED the shrimps returning the shells/heads ONLY to the chicken stock on a low simmer for 20 minutes before straining the shells/heads from the stock. I omitted the can of mushrooms and didn't think the Tom Yum paste was needed so omitted that as well. I pretty much followed the rest of the recipe using more or less of what I liked and then just before plating the wonderfully colorful and fragrant soup I returned the shrimps to the soup for an additional minute or two to finish cooking the shrimp. Great, complete recipe...better than most restaurants I've been, too! Thanks!!

Just make as is and good, good, good.

Added lil coconut milk at the end for added thickness. Delightful.

Yummy! Don't forget to pound the lemongrass to get more flavor out of it.

Delicious and spicy!