Thai Fish Sour Soup, "Gaeng Som Pla"

This is a popular fish soup that is quite common in Thailand, where it is usually prepared using a freshwater fish "pla chon", or snakehead serpent fish. As an alternative, we suggest using canned herrings packed in brine. It can also be prepared using chicken and chicken stock. 

Ingredients

about one and a half pounds of fish fillets 

4 cups of fish stock 

2-3 tablespoons sour curry paste
1/4 cup fish sauce 
1 tablespoon tamarind concentrate mixed with 3 tablespoons water
1-2 tablespoons palm sugar (to taste) 
2 cups of very coarsely chopped green vegetables 

Method

If you are using fresh fish then dehead, detail, and gut your fish and fillet it to produce four fillets of fish. 

Heat the stock to simmering point, and add all the ingredients except the fish and return it to the boil. 

Add the fish and simmer until the fish is cooked through. 

This dish can be eaten as a soup course, but in Thailand soups are normally eaten with the other dishes of the dinner, rather than before them. Therefore you should use a slotted spoon to remove the fish and serve it in individual bowls to the diners. The soup liquid is then placed in a large serving bowl, from where they can help themselves (you can use a fire pot of fondue cooker to keep it hot if you wish). We also offer an instant gaeng som curry paste.