Name: Hot sour fish soup
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 500 millilitre fish stock; 500 millilitre water; 1 smashed bulb of lemon grass; 3 coriander roots, chopped; 5 kaffir lime leaves; 1 teaspoon fish sauce; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 3 small fillets of gurnard (about 350g), rinsed and cut into chunks; 3 baby bok choy, trimmed, quartered and thoroughly washed; 100 gram white button mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced; 4 large kaffir lime leaves, shredded, ribs removed; 3 spring onions, trimmed and sliced; 1 large red chilli, chopped (add ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes if necessary); 2 tablespoon lime juice; 1 cup bean sprouts; 1 cup roughly chopped coriander

Hot sour fish soup

This is refreshing and light but deeply satisfying, and it’s fast! Ring the changes with prawns, if that’s what you have. I use Campbell’s fish stock when I don’t have my own and it works a treat.

Ingredients

500 millilitre fish stock

500 millilitre water

1 smashed bulb of lemon grass

3 coriander roots, chopped

5 kaffir lime leaves

1 teaspoon fish sauce

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 small fillets of gurnard (about 350g), rinsed and cut into chunks

3 baby bok choy, trimmed, quartered and thoroughly washed

100 gram white button mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced

4 large kaffir lime leaves, shredded, ribs removed

3 spring onions, trimmed and sliced

1 large red chilli, chopped (add ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes if necessary)

2 tablespoon lime juice

1 cup bean sprouts

1 cup roughly chopped coriander

Method

1.Put stock, water, lemon grass, coriander roots and 1 kaffir lime leaf in a pot over high heat. Heat until steaming, then turn off the heat and leave it to infuse for 15 minutes.

2.Prepare the remaining ingredients, including shredding remaining lime leaves.

3.Strain broth then return to cleaned pan and swirl in fish sauce and salt. Reheat and bring to the merest bubble (do not let it boil). Add fish and bok choy. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring gently once or twice.

4.Add mushrooms, lime leaves, spring onions and chilli and cook for 2 minutes more. If the chilli is not hot enough, add chilli flakes to taste. Swirl in lime juice, then add beansprouts.

5.Dish into bowls and scatter with coriander. Serve immediately.

To get the right balance, the soup must have a good chilli bite. If the chilli you use is mild, add extra oomph with chilli flakes.
Note

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Ingredients

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