Nigella's Hot and Sour Soup

This was incredibly easy to make and yummy and the fruits of me trying to be organised and actually go through my cookery books and pick new recipes to try out which makes me feel smug. I love making chicken laksa but wanted a bit of a change and this is a great soup to have in your arsenal and the prawns make a nice change from chicken. It comes from Nigella Bites- an oldy but a goody.

HOT & SOUR SOUP
Serves 4-6

1.5 litres chicken stock
1 heaped tbsp tom yum paste
1 stick lemon grass, inner part only, roughly chopped
4 kaffir lime leaves, finely chopped
juice of 1 lime
4 tbsp fish sauce
3 small fresh red chillies, finely chopped
1 tsp sugar
150g straw or button mushrooms. halved or quartered
500g peeled raw prawns, thawed if frozen
5 small spring onions, cut into short lengths and then into strips
small bunch coriander, chopped

I didn't have the kaffir lime leaves so I left them out and it was fine. I used button mushrooms which were yummy and defrosted my prawns in the fridge during the day so they were ready to go in when I cooked in the evening.

1. Heat the stock and tom yum in a decent sized saucepan with the lime leaves, lemongrass, lime juice, fish sauce, chillies and sugar.

2. Bring to the boil, add the mushrooms and simmer for a couple of minutes, then add the prawns and spring onions and cook for a further 2-3 minutes or until the prawns are cooked but still tender.

Does not look as yummy as it was

3. Sprinkle with a little coriander and put more on the table for people to add if they want.