Tom Yum Soup with Chicken Wings
A comforting soup infused with lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves; the essence of Thai home cooking. The chicken wings turns plain water into a luxuriously rich and flavourful broth in a short time. This is an excerpt from my cookbook SABAI.
Ingredients
- 5 cups water
- 1½ pounds chicken drumettes, (see notes 1 and 2)
- ½ cup coarsely chopped shallots
- 3-4 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2-3 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 5 spicy dried chilies, such as Thai chilies or chiles de árbol, or more to taste (see note )
- 2 stalks lemongrass, bottom halves only, smashed and cut in 2-inch (5 cm ) pieces
- 10 thin slices galangal, about 25 g.
- 10 makrut lime leaves
- 3.5 ounces oyster or shimeji mushrooms
- 1½ cups halved cherry tomatoes
- 3 to 4 tablespoons lime juice
- 7 to 8 sprigs cilantro, chopped
- Jasmine rice, for serving
Notes
- Drumettes are easier to eat in soups than whole wings. If you’ve got the whole wings, save the flats for these easy and delicious Fish Sauce Wings.
- If you don’t want to navigate chicken bones while eating soup, I get it. You can opt to use 1 pound (450 g ) bite-sized pieces of boneless chicken thighs instead, but then you must use unsalted chicken stock instead of water. Without the bones, the meat will not give a rich enough broth and the soup will not be nearly as good.
Instructions
- Bring the water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add the chicken drumettes, shallots, 3 tablespoons (45 ml ) fish sauce and 2 teaspoons (10 ml ) sugar. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the chicken is fork-tender.5 cups water, 1½ pounds chicken drumettes, ½ cup coarsely chopped shallots, 3-4 tablespoons fish sauce, 2-3 teaspoons granulated sugar
- While the chicken is cooking, char the dried chilies for additional smoky flavor. Place the chilies in a dry skillet over medium-high heat and stir them for a few minutes until they develop charred spots and smell smoky. Keep an eye on them and don’t walk away! Once charred, set aside.5 spicy dried chilies
- When the chicken is tender, add the dried chilies (keep them whole for a milder soup, or break them up for a spicy soup), lemongrass, galangal, and mushrooms. Twist the makrut lime leaves to bruise them and release their aroma before tearing them into big chunks and adding to the pot, discarding any big center stems. Simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.2 stalks lemongrass, 10 thin slices galangal, 3.5 ounces oyster or shimeji mushrooms, 10 makrut lime leaves
- Add the tomatoes and cook for about 2 minutes, or just until the tomatoes are soft but still hold their shape. Turn off the heat and stir in 3 tablespoons (45 ml ) lime juice. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more fish sauce, sugar, or lime juice as needed. You want it to lead with sour and salty. The sweetness is there for balance, but the soup should not taste distinctly sweet. Before serving, you can remove the herbs, as they are not meant to be eaten; however traditionally they are left in the soup. I like to remove only half to make it a little easier to eat while keeping the traditional look. Be sure to remind your guests not to eat them!1½ cups halved cherry tomatoes, 3 to 4 tablespoons lime juice
- Garnish the soup with cilantro and serve with jasmine rice. The meat should be super tender and easy to pry off the bones with a spoon.7 to 8 sprigs cilantro, Jasmine rice
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