Description
Thai Sweet Potato Soup with Shrimp is a warming yet refreshing soup. It’s got tropical flavors such as lemongrass, lime, cilantro, and ginger. This is a great recipe to warm you up as winter ends.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 2 serrano chilies, minced (can sub jalapenos)*
- 2 inches fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 2 tablespoons lemongrass paste (found in a squeeze-tube in the fresh herb section at most grocery stores)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 cups chicken broth (can sub vegetable broth; fish stock would be even better, if you have it)
- 2 large sweet potatoes peeled and cubed (about 4 cups)
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves and stems, roughly chopped
- 10 button mushrooms, washed, and sliced
- 1 can full-fat coconut milk (can sub light coconut milk for a lighter version)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons honey
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce (found in the Asian section of your grocery store)**
- 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
- Juice of two large limes
- Extra lime wedges for garnish
- Cilantro leaves for garnish
- EXTRA TOPPINGS:
- Sriracha sauce
- Shredded purple cabbage
- Sriracha Honey Roasted Cashews
Instructions
- Heat a medium-sized stock pot over medium heat. Melt the coconut oil. Saute the chilies for 3 minutes. Add the ginger and lemongrass. Saute for another 5 minutes, or until the lemongrass becomes fragrant and slightly caramelized. Add the garlic and saute for one more minute.
- Add the chicken broth and the sweet potatoes. Turn the heat up to high, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are fork-tender. Remove from heat. Stir in the cilantro.
- Puree the soup using an immersion blender. Or transfer it to a blender, but only fill it halfway up to avoid an explosion that can be caused by suction when blending hot liquids. Blend in batches.
- Return the pureed soup back to the soup pot. Turn the heat on high. Add the mushrooms. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender.
- Add the coconut milk, honey, and fish sauce.
- Once the coconut milk, honey and fish sauce have been stirred in, turn the heat down to low. Add the shrimp, stirring constantly for 5 minutes, or until the shrimp have turned pink and curled up. Once they are cooked, immediately shut off the heat. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp; otherwise they can get rubbery.
- Stir in the lime juice.
- Ladle into bowls and garnish with more cilantro leaves, and lime wedges on the side. Serve with other extra toppings on the side, if desired, as listed above. Serve hot.
- Reheat leftovers gently, being careful not to overcook the shrimp.
Notes
* I would rate the spiciness of this soup as very mild. If you prefer an even more mild spice level, then remove the ribs and seeds from the chilies, or omit them completely.
**The idea of fish sauce can gross some people out, and to be honest, I do not like the smell of it. But trust me, it adds a lot of salty flavor and depth to this soup that you can’t get from plain old salt. It does not make the soup taste fishy at all. If you really don’t want to use the fish sauce, then simply omit it and add salt to taste. Or you could try some soy sauce for a much different flavor.
