Ingredients

• 1 pound whole shrimp
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon hot chili paste
• 1 tablespoon raw sugar
• 4 kaffir lime leaves
• 3 red Thai chiles
• 3 stalks lemongrass, tough outer layers removed, cut into 1-inch pieces
• One 2-inch piece galangal, peeled
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 cups straw mushrooms
• 8 ounces tilapia or other white fish, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 20 manila clams

Instructions

1. Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a pot. Meanwhile, peel and devein the shrimp, reserving the heads and shells. Throw the heads and shells into the boiling water and set the meat aside. Simmer over medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit and stew for another 20 minutes. Strain the broth into a clean pot lined with cheesecloth. Add the lime juice, fish sauce, chili paste, raw sugar, lime leaves, chiles, lemongrass, galangal and cherry tomatoes to the shrimp broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let simmer for 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms, tilapia, clams and reserved shrimp and cook until the clams have opened, about 5 minutes. Discard any unopened clams and the galangal. Divide the soup among bowls and enjoy.