Tom Yum with Mushrooms and Tofu
Tom yum is one of the few famous Thai soups that needs no coconut milk and no oil, which makes it a natural fit here. The heat and sour come from bird chiles and a lot of lime, and the balance comes from a single blended date instead of palm sugar. Add the lime and herbs off the heat or you lose them.
Ingredients
- 2 stalks Lemongrass, bruised and cut in 2 inch lengths
- 6 slices Galangal
- 8 Shiitake mushrooms, halved
- 3 Thai bird chiles, bruised
- 1 Medjool date, pitted
- 2 Fresh tomatoes, cut into wedges
- 8 oz Firm tofu, cubed
- 1 tbsp Low-sodium tamari
- 2 Limes, juiced
- 3 tbsp Cilantro, chopped
- 2 Scallions, sliced
For no added salt, leave out the tamari. Lime, lemongrass, and chile already drive tom yum; add a little more lime to keep it bright.
Method
- Bring 6 cups (1.4 L) water to a boil. Add the lemongrass, galangal, and bird chiles, and simmer for 8 minutes. This is the whole point of tom yum: a fast, loud broth. Do not strain it, the aromatics stay in the bowl.
- Blend the date with a splash of the hot broth into a smooth paste, then stir it back into the pot. It rounds the sour and hot edges the way palm sugar would, without the sugar.
- Add the mushrooms and simmer for 3 minutes, until they soften.
- Add the tomatoes and tofu and simmer for 2 minutes more, just to heat through.
- Turn off the heat. This matters: lime and fresh herbs die if you boil them. Stir in the tamari and the lime juice now, off the heat.
- Taste. Tom yum should hit sour first, then heat, then a whisper of sweet. Adjust with more lime for sour or a little more tamari for depth.
- Ladle into bowls and top with cilantro and scallions. Eat around the lemongrass and galangal, or fish them out.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 155 calories, 11 g protein, 5 g fiber, 140 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
