Tom Yum Soup (Tom Yum Goong) Recipe

With over 3 million views on YouTube, this recipe is one of the most popular, and an OG, on Hot Thai Kitchen. This world-famous tom yum soup is universally loved; and with this authentic recipe I promise you can make it as good as, if not better than, the ones in restaurants. It's one of the first dishes I learned to make as a child because it's so easy, making this a great first Thai dish to try!

What is Tom Yum Soup?

Tom yum (ต้มยำ) is a type of Thai hot and sour soup where the iconic flavours come from 3 herbs: lemongrass, galangal, and makrut (kaffir) lime leaves. For Thai people, these 3 herbs are very much associated with tom yum, which is why I call them the "tom yum trinity." Tom yum can be made with any protein, including tom yum chicken, tom yum fish, and even tom yum with your leftovers, but the most popular version is made with shrimp, i.e. tom yum goong ต้มยำกุ้ง (goong means shrimp).

If I had to pick a national dish for Thailand this would be a strong contender because it's eaten all over the country and is loved by essentially everyone. It's served at street-side eateries, fancy restaurants, and is commonly made at home. It was also a staple in my elementary school cafeteria!

Thai people love tom yum flavour so much that we incorporate it into many other dishes like tom yum spaghetti, tom yum fried rice, and even tom yum pizza which was originally introduced by Pizza Hut in Thailand! You can also make a delicious tom yum stir fry or what we call "dry tom yum."

Ingredients and Notes

Here are all the ingredients for tom yum soup and important notes about them.

• Medium to large shrimp, head-on, shell-on preferable. The shrimp shells and heads are for making shrimp stock for maximum shrimpiness. If not available, or if you prefer a more neutral (less shrimpy) soup, you can use unsalted, preferably Asian-style chicken stock instead.
• Makrut lime leaves (previously known as kaffir lime leaves). Look for makrut lime leaves at stores that sell Southeast Asian products, and if fresh isn't available, look for frozen. Dried can work, but double the amount. For more info, read my guide to makrut lime leaves.
• Lemongrass. Fresh is best as it is the main flavour of the soup, but whole frozen lemongrass is fine (not chopped). Dried isn't ideal, but it's workable; you'll have to experiment with amounts but you can keep adding until the flavour really comes through. Do not use powdered. For more on lemongrass including how to freeze it, read my ultimate guide to lemongrass.
• Galangal. That's the knobby thing that looks a bit like ginger. Look for galangal at stores that sell Southeast Asian products, and if fresh isn't available, look for frozen. Dried pieces of galangal will also work in a pinch. Do not substitute with ginger, which tastes very different. For more on galangal including how to freeze it, read my ultimate guide to galangal.
• Thai chilies, the amount is to taste, but tom yum is supposed to be a spicy soup so I would add at least 1.
• Thai chilli paste/chili jam. Known as nam prik pao in Thai, this is a sweet-savoury thick paste that you can buy or make at home using this recipe. See more on this ingredient, including how to make tom yum without it below.
• Fresh lime juice. Fresh is the key word here.
• Fish sauce. Use good quality fish sauce as it is the main seasoning. Read more about fish sauce here including brand recommendations.
• Sugar. You may or may not need it, depending on the sweetness of your Thai chili paste.
• Oyster mushrooms, or another type of Asian mushrooms such as shimeji, enoki or fresh shiitake. If you can find them, straw mushrooms are the most common type used in tom yum in Thailand. Don't use button mushrooms, they're not nearly as good in soups.
• Cilantro for garnish, or you can also use sawtooth coriander (culantro) which is also common. Sub green onions if you don't like cilantro.

How to Make Tom Yum Soup

Here's a bird's eye view of the process, but be sure to check out the full video tutorial below to ensure success! You can also watch the video on my YouTube Channel. The written recipe with detailed instructions are in the recipe card below.

1. For the shrimp stock (skip to step 5 if using chicken stock): Peel and devein the shrimp, adding all shells and heads into a stock pot.
2. Add a little oil, chopped daikon and/or onion into the shrimp shells.
3. Saute the shells over medium high heat, pressing on the heads to get out the tomalley.
4. Once the shells are all orange, and the bits stuck to the bottom of the bot start to brown, add the water and bring to a simmer; simmer for 5 minutes.

5. Prep the herbs: Using only the bottom half of the lemongrass, cut ½-inch off the root end and then smash the stalk with the back of your knife or a pestle.
6. Thinly slice the galangal. If you have frozen whole galangal, allow it to partially thaw at room temp for 10-15 minutes, until it's soft enough to slice; do not let it completely thaw.
7. Twist the makrut lime leaves to bruise, then tear into chunks, removing the center ribs.
8. Pound the Thai chilies into a rough paste, or finely mince them.

9. Once the shrimp are done, scoop out the shells and discard. Measure out 4 cups of the stock then add to the pot. If you have a bit more, that's okay, if you don't have enough, add water to make up the shortfall.
10. Add the herbs, the chilies, and the mushrooms and simmer for 5 minutes.
11. Add the fish sauce and the Thai chili paste (it will help to loosen the chili paste first with a bit of the broth so it will dissolve more easily in the soup.)
12. Bring the soup back to a boil, then add the shrimp and cook until halfway done, 30-45 seconds, then turn off the heat and allow the residual heat of the soup to fully cook the shrimp.

13. Add the lime juice and then taste and adjust seasoning. Tom yum should lead with sour, but if it tastes too sour, add the sugar to balance. Tom yum is supposed to be served with rice, so it should taste strong on its own, but if you'll eat it on its own and it feels too strong, you can dilute it with some hot water.
14. Stir in chopped cilantro or green onions.
15. Serve with jasmine rice, and to eat it like a Thai, make 1-2 simple things to go along with it. I highly recommend a Thai omelette which is super easy and my favourite pairing with tom yum goong!

A Note on Nam Prik Pao - Thai Chili Paste/Chili Jam

When making tom yum with shrimp, nam prik pao or "Thai chili paste" is a key flavour. Technically it's not necessary, as you can make tom yum without it, and in fact, we only add it to tom yum made with shrimp, because the chili paste has a shrimpy flavour. However, if your goal is to recreate the tom yum you fell in love with at a Thai restaurant, you need to add it to achieve the same flavour profile - it makes a big difference.

You can either buy it - Pantainorasingh, Mae Pranom or Thai Kitchen brands are all good, though they vary slightly in flavour and sweetness - or you can also make it at home using this homemade chili paste recipe (which lasts indefinitely in the fridge).

A popular variation on the classic tom yum soup

You might have had creamy versions of tom yum soup...so what's up with those? Assuming you weren't actually having tom kha, there's a very modern version of tom yum in Thailand called tom yum goong nam kon or "creamy tom yum with shrimp".

I LOVE it, and I'd say I prefer it if it's the only thing I'm having because it's more substantial. Instead of the clear broth, we enrich it with....drumroll....evaporated milk! Surprise! Check out my creamy tom yum goong recipe here.

You might have thought coconut milk would be used, but evaporated milk is used to add richness and creaminess without interfering much with the flavours of tom yum. If you add coconut milk, which you absolutely can, the coconut milk flavour will come through in a major way. This isn't a bad thing at all, it's delicious, but it's different and will end up tasting a bit more like the other popular Thai soup - tom kha gai.

How to Eat Tom Yum Soup Like a Thai

*To see how to eat a Thai meal like a Thai, I recommend watching/reading my post on The Complete Thai dining etiquette!

You've made the soup...now how do you serve it like a Thai? The recipe calls for jasmine rice for serving...but do you put the rice IN the soup? BESIDE the soup?? All fair questions.

Tom yum, like most Thai soups, is typically served as part of a multi-dish, family-style Thai meal, and it is not served on its own. In Thailand, you would have a plate of jasmine rice in front of you, and all the main dishes in the centre to be shared with everyone. And the soup would be served into an individual small soup bowl which you keep on the side of your plate, and you eat the soup during the meal alongside everything else.

You can also put a little bit of rice in your soup if that's how you like it. You can even put some of the broth on your rice on your plate. Finally, you can cook up some rice noodles and put it in the tom yum and have yourself a tom yum noodle soup!

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