Tom yum soup with eggplant, chicken and seafood
8 servings
35 minutes
Tom Yum with eggplants, chicken, and seafood is an Eastern gastronomic wonder that combines the heat of passionate spices and the tenderness of marine gifts. Traditionally originating from Thailand, its adaptation with eggplants and chicken makes it unique while maintaining a balance of spiciness, sourness, and creamy texture thanks to coconut cream. The velvety broth infused with lime, ginger, and coriander aromas fills each sip with layered flavor, while the variation with roasted eggplants adds a pleasant textural depth to the dish. This soup is perfect for warming dinners, offering vibrant taste and a sense of coziness. It pairs especially well with rice that gently tones down the spiciness and fresh cilantro that highlights the dish's exotic character.
1
We clean small shrimp. Fry the shells in a pan until intensely pink, add a liter of water and boil the broth, adding a teaspoon of turmeric and some coriander seeds. We boil the shrimp broth for 15 minutes to extract the shells better. Strain and set aside.
- Coriander seeds: to taste
- Fresh ginger: 1 piece
- Lime juice: 50 ml
2
Eggplants can be added peeled and raw directly into the soup, blending with the overall flavor and making a wonderful addition, or they can be baked in slices on a baking sheet in the oven without peeling, or simply fried — then the texture will be noticeable. I like both ways; you decide for yourself. The photo shows the second option.
- Eggplant: 300 g
3
While the broth is boiling, prepare all the ingredients: grate the ginger, finely chop the onion, crush the garlic with coriander in a mortar, zest the lime and squeeze the juice, finely chop the tomatoes and chili.
- Fresh ginger: 1 piece
- Onion: 50 g
- Garlic: 2 cloves
- Lime zest: 1 piece
- Tomatoes: 2 pieces
- Red chili pepper: to taste
4
Then we cut the chicken breast into strips and prepare (thaw) any seafood to taste - I have squid, shrimp, scallops, mussels, and small octopuses.
- Chicken breast fillet: 250 g
- Seafood: 500 g
5
In a 2-liter soup pot, sauté 4 cm of grated ginger, finely chopped onion, garlic, and coriander, crushed in a mortar, lime zest in neutral vegetable oil for 2 minutes, then add finely chopped tomato, chili, and 1 tablespoon of pad thai sauce. If this sauce is not available, any Thai hot sauce will do.
- Fresh ginger: 1 piece
- Onion: 50 g
- Garlic: 2 cloves
- Lime zest: 1 piece
- Tomatoes: 2 pieces
- Red chili pepper: to taste
- Pad thai sauce: 1 tablespoon
6
Add chicken, eggplant, 2 cans of 400 g coconut cream to the pot and pour shrimp broth over it all, boil for no more than 10 minutes (add seafood in the middle of cooking).
- Chicken breast fillet: 250 g
- Eggplant: 300 g
- Coconut cream: 800 ml
- Seafood: 500 g
7
Garnish with fresh cilantro and sprinkle with lime zest.
- Lime zest: 1 piece
8
If there is not enough liquid, add water.
