Vietnamese-Style Sour Soup with Shrimp

I’ve made Vietnamese-Style Sour Soup ,various time but finally this time I took some time to document my recipe in addition to making a cooking video to share. This is my Cambodian take on a very popular Vietnamese soup known as Canh Chua Tom or in Khmer called Somlaw Machew Youn Bongkong សម្លម្ជូរយួនបង្កង. Light and refreshing but yet yeild a lot of flavors from the fresh herbs and vegetable. Fried garlic topped at the end not only add a wonderful aroma but a hint of a smokey flavor.

Here I use plump black tiger prawns which cook fairly quickly. You can also use fish, chicken, or pork ribs. Meats take a bit longer time to cook. You would want to make sure that those meats are at least 90% cook before you start adding vegetables. Otherwise the vegetables will get mushy or soggy while waiting for the meat to cook.

Moreover, there are an abundance of vegetables you can use. I suggest you go with what you like. I’ve made this soup using orkra, elephant ear (kdard), and even water spinach (trokoun).

Vietnamese-Style Sour Soup with Shrimp (makes 3-4 servings)
(Somlaw Machew Youn Bongkong) សម្លម្ជូរយួនបង្កង

Video Tutorial:

Ingredients
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3½ cups water
1/2 tablespoon sugar
1½ tablespoons tamarind soup base
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 (16 oz) can quail eggs (yield about 18 eggs)
20 black tiger shrimp, peeled & devein (about 1 lb)
3 cups sliced fresh pineapple
1 jalapeños, sliced
1 small shallot, sliced
2 cups diced tomatoes
1 cup bean sprout
1 cup chopped sawtooth herb and/or rice paddy herb

Method:
Heat oil in a small sauce pan/pot. Test oil with a piece of garlic. If it sizzle right away then it’s ready. Add the remainder and fry until brown. DO NOT WALK AWAY! Garlic brown very fast. Stir it so they don’t clump. Once the garlic are fried, strain and set aside. Reserve the oil for another dish like fried eggs or sauteed vegetables.

Next, in a pot bring water to a rolling boil. Add sugar, tamarind soup base and fish sauce. Give it a stir to combine.

Add quail eggs gently so the soup doesn’t splash on you. Technically, the eggs are cooked so you are just warming them up again.

Add black tiger shrimp, sliced pineapples, jalapeños, shallots, diced tomatoes, bean sprouts and chopped herb. Give it a stir and allow it to come back to a boil.

Ladle to a severing bowl and E-N-J-O-Y!