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D. Schmidt
This beautiful Thai soup makes a gracious addition to any table. Serve it as a special appetizer for a dinner party or just make it for dinner In Thai, it's known as "Geng Som Pla" - which actually means "Orange Fish Curry" - an ancient recipe from the Central Plains region of Thailand. It is a fiery-hot soup with both sour and sweet overtones that make for a lively combination, especially when paired with your choice of fish and/or seafood. Plenty of fresh local vegetables are another characteristic of this wonderfully healthy Thai soup.
Ingredients
- 6 cups good-quality chicken stock
- 2 to 3 small to medium fillets of sole (or snapper, or any "white" fish, cut into bite-size pieces)
- 10 medium shrimp (or other shellfish)
- Juice of 2 oranges (or about 1 cup prepared orange juice)
- 2 tsp. tamarind paste (available at Asian/Indian food stores, or 2 tbsp. lime juice)
- 1 tbsp. palm sugar (or brown sugar)
- 3 tbsp. fish sauce
- 2 cups baby bok choy (or other Chinese greens, chopped if leaves are large)
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 cup green beans (cut into 2-inch lengths)
- 1 small zucchini (cut into matchstick-like pieces)
- 3-4 fresh orange slices (cut in half)
- For the Paste:
- 1 shallot (or 1/4 cup purple onion)
- 1/2-1 fresh red chili (or chili flakes to taste)
- 1 thumb-size piece ginger
- 3-4 cloves garlic
- 1/4 tsp. ground white pepper
- 1/2 tsp. shrimp paste (or 1 extra tsp. fish sauce)
- 1 tbsp. fish sauce
- Generous handful fresh coriander (plus, extra for later)
Steps to Make It
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Make the soup paste, either by mincing and stirring all paste ingredients together by hand or by placing paste ingredients in food processor and processing well.
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Warm a medium-size soup pot over high heat. Drizzle vegetable oil in the bottom then add the paste you just made. Stir-fry 1-2 minutes to release the fragrance, then add stock, orange juice, tamarind or lime, and sugar. When soup comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium.
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Add the firmer of the vegetables: the beans and "whiter" parts of the Chinese cabbage, if using. Simmer for 4 to 5 minutes, or until beans have softened.
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Add remaining vegetables, plus fish and shrimp. Simmer 2 to 3 minutes, until fish has turned firm and opaque-white and shrimp are pink and plump. Finally, add the fish sauce. Tip: Don't over-stir at this point, as this will cause fish pieces to break up.
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Remove soup from the heat and do a taste-test. It should be spicy, salty, and sour with overtones of sweetness. Increase flavor/saltiness by adding more fish sauce (if it's too salty for your taste, add more lime juice); then work on adjusting the sour-sweetness balance. Exactly how sour or sweet your soup tastes will depend on the sweetness of your oranges/orange juice and the strength of your tamarind paste/lime juice which is quite sour. Add 1 to 2 Tbsp. more brown sugar, as needed, OR up to 1/4 cup more orange juice (if the juice is sweet). For a richer soup, add up to 1/2 cup coconut milk. If you'd like more spice and flavor, add a dollop or two of Thai chili sauce.
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To serve, ladle soup into bowls. Add several half-slices of orange to each bowl, then sprinkle over the fresh coriander. (Note: Noodles can also be added). Enjoy.
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