🌧️ On a rainy day or when feeling unwell, having a hot and tangy soup can really make my body feel better. If it's a Thai-style soup with many herbs, the fragrant aroma also helps to clear the throat.
Hello from Thailand 😊
- I hope everyone is doing well. I am too. The weather is quite cold because it has been raining. So, I made Tom Som Pla Too Lang (Sour Soup with Lang Mackerel). It's an easy to make, classic Thai dish that perfectly balances the three main flavours of Thai cuisine, but has its own unique characteristic. A prominent sourness from lime juice. This is the first, most distinct, and clearest flavour you taste, making you feel refreshed, it's the heart of this dish. The salty and sweet notes play a supporting role; the saltiness from fish sauce helps bring out the flavour of the fish and the broth, while the slight sweetness from coconut sugar doesn't make it overly sweet but instead adds roundness and balances the sourness.
INGREDIENTS
- 3 Lang Mackerel (Pla Too Lang)
- 2 tbsp Lime juice
- 1 tbsp Coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp Fish sauce
- 3-4 Fresh chilies
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 1 Coriander (including roots)
- 2 stalks Lemongrass
- 3 Kaffir lime leaves
- 1 Culantro
- Water 1 litre
INSTRUCTIONS
- Wash the mackerel thoroughly. I wash them with salt water to reduce the fishy smell, then rinse several times with plain water. Let them drain in a colander. I use the whole fish, just scoring both sides. If the fish are too large, you can cut them into pieces.
Prepare the herbs
Wash the coriander and culantro, pat dry, and finely chop. Separate the coriander roots.
Peel the garlic, wash, and pat dry.
Wash the lemongrass and turmeric, pat dry, cut into short pieces, and bruise lightly with a pestle or the flat of a knife.
Wash the kaffir lime leaves, pat dry, and tear into small pieces.
Pound the garlic, coriander roots, and fresh chilies into a coarse paste. Set aside.
Cooking Steps
- Pour water into a pot. Place on the stove over high heat. Add the lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, and turmeric. Bring to a boil.
- Add the pounded paste and the Lang Mackerel. Wait for it to boil again, then reduce to a low simmer (if the heat is too high and it boils vigorously, the fish will break apart). Simmer for another 3 minutes.
- Season with lime juice, coconut sugar, and fish sauce. Taste; it should have a leading tangy flavour, followed by saltiness and a hint of sweetness.
I simmer for another 5 minutes to let the flavours seep into the fish, keeping the heat low throughout.
Add the finely chopped coriander and culantro. Turn off the heat.
- It has a complex aroma from the herbs. The fragrance of lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, and the spiciness from the pounded chilies and garlic, enhance the scent and add another dimension, making the flavour more complex. You don't just smell the aroma, you also get the well-rounded taste of these herbs in the broth.
- The Lang Mackerel, cooked just right, provides a delicious umami and a slight richness to the broth. Overall, I'm very pleased with this dish. It's a refreshing soup, slightly spicy, distinctly sour, perfectly salty-sweet, and fragrant with herbs. The fish is tender and smooth. Having a spoonful of the broth makes my stomach feel so comforted.😊
Tom Som Pla Too Lang
So, how about this menu? Easy, yummy, and good for you! 😃 Thank you all for visiting. See you again soon!
