Recipe: Seafood Noodle Soup

Recipe Source: Hyunh, Les.  Takeaway.  Murdoch Books, Miller's Point, 2006 p. 57.

I learned an important lesson when making this recipe.  I learned to be very, very careful about reading the price tag on ingredients, and to pay attention to which bag of shrimp I'm picking up.  I know seafood isn't cheap, but this was four times what I should have paid for shrimp in the same store.  There wasn't anything particularly special about the flavor of these shrimp that makes me feel that the increased price was justified.  I'm not accusing Whole Foods of pulling a fast one by any stretch of the imagination.  I just grabbed the wrong bag, and when I recognized that this was not what the bags of shrimp usually look like I only saw the cost per pound, not the actual price of the bag. 

Anyway, the soup was tasty, although it could have used a bit of ginger to brighten up the flavors a bit.  I used all of the shrimp because they were thawed already and wouldn't keep, so that was more seafood than called for in the original recipe.  I used olive oil for the vegetable oil, because that's what I keep on hand.  I used homemade duck stock in place of chicken stock (and a good thing too, or else the cost per serving would be even higher, and I just couldn't face that).  I omitted the sugar because I don't like things to be overly sweet.  I couldn't find "long red chilies," but I could find habaneros.  Habaneros worked better for me in this case, because both my husband and I have been a little under the weather lately and a good blast of habanero is always good for what ails you.  Or what ails me, anyway.  I omitted the scallion because all mine were bad, and while I used the bean sprouts I'm not convinced that they were 100% necessary in the recipe.  I really, really liked the pineapple. 

Seafood Noodle Soup (serves 6; approx. $7.60/serving)

2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, thinly sliced

5 garlic cloves, crushed

2 lemongrass stalks, roughly chopped

6 cups duck stock

2 celery stalks, thinly sliced

1 tomato, cut into wedges

1/2 cup canned pineapple wedges

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1 1/2 ounces tamarind concentrate

2 1/2 ounces water

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 package rice sticks

2 habaneros, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fish sauce

Pinch ground grains of paradise

1 package mung bean sprouts

1 bunch cilantro

Equipment:

• Large pot
• 2 medium sized bowl

1. Combine the shrimp, 1 tablespoon fish sauce and the habaneros in the bowl.  Toss well and let sit for 15 - 20 minutes.
2. Heat the oil in the pot.
3. Put the rice sticks in the second bowl.  Cover with boiling water and let sit 10 minutes.
4. Add the onion, garlic and lemon grass.  Stir fry until fragrant. 
5. Dissolve the tamarind concentrate in the 2 1/2 ounces water.
6. Add the stock, celery, tomato, pineapple, fish sauce, tamarind water and salt.  Bring to a boil.

7. Reduce heat to a simmer.  Cook 2 - 3 minutes.

8. Add the shrimp.  Simmer another 3 minutes.

9. Drain the noodles. 

10. Put a handful of noodles in the bottom of each bowl your diners will use.

11. Ladle the soup on top of the noodles.

12. Top each bowl with some bean sprouts and cilantro.

13. Serve.