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Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cook Time: 15 Minutes |
Ready In: 30 Minutes Servings: 6 |
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Warming, cleansing soup: perfect comfort food without being unhealthy. Ingredients:
2 teaspoons sunflower oil |
1 small garlic clove, chopped |
1/4 teaspoon thai shrimp paste (blachan) |
2 stalks lemongrass |
2 kaffir lime leaves or 1 strip of pared lime rind |
1 quart chicken stock |
3 ounces dried medium egg noodles |
2 tablespoons thai fish sauce |
1 lime, juice only (about 2 tsp) |
1/2 hot red pepper, seeded and finely chopped (medium-hot) |
1/2 teaspoon light brown sugar |
2 ounces fresh spinach or 2 ounces pak choi, cut 1in wide strips |
fresh cilantro leaves |
Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan.
2. Add the garlic and shrimp paste and fry gently over a medium heat for 1 minute.
3. Meanwhile, lightly crush the lemon grass stalks with a rolling pin or the blade of a large knife.
4. To make the soup add the lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves and chicken stock to the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, drop the noodles into a pan of boiling water, remove from the heat and leave to soak for 4 minutes, before draining.
6. To refine the soup, strain the stock through a fine sieve into a bowl, return to the pan and add the fish sauce, lime juice, red chilli and sugar.
7. Simmer for 3 minutes.
8. Add the egg noodles and spinach, or pak choi and simmer for a further 30 seconds.
9. Finally, ladle into bowls, dividing the noodles equally between them and scatter over the cilantro leaves.
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