Spice up winter nights with this Thai-style hot & sour crab soup. The chilli, lemongrass, garlic and kaffir lime combo can help stave off winter sniffles, while the crab meat is low in fat and high in vitamins and minerals – making this a healthy and tasty lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
454g fresh crab meat
2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
4 Thai chilies or 6 small jalapeño chilies, steamed, seeded, and finely chopped
1 stalk of lemongrass, white part sliced as thin as possible
3 kaffir lime leaves (optional)
60ml lime juice or more to taste
60ml Thai fish sauce or more to taste
2tsp sugar
700ml chicken stock or crab stock
1 tin unsweetened coconut milk
Salt (optional)
2tbsp coarsely chopped coriander leaves
Method
Combine all the ingredients except the crab and coriander and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt, more fish sauce (Thai dishes that taste under-salted often need fish sauce instead of salt), and/or more lime juice. The soup should have a distinct tang. Immediately before serving, bring the soup to a boil over high heat and stir in the crab meat and the coriander. Leave the crab meat over the heat for just one minute more to heat through. Serve immediately in hot bowls with some fresh crusty bread.
Recipe courtesy of Favis of Salcombe
