Tom Yum Paste - Aroy D Brand vs Cock Brand
We offer two very popular instant tom yum pastes and here we compared them side-by-side and share the results.
You can make great tom yum yourself by following along with these simple steps.
Aroy-D brand Tom Yum Paste
Cock brand Tom Yum Paste (made by Aroy-D)
We also offer Tom Yum Soup in a can and Lobo brand Tom Yum Paste
Detailed instructions are on the packages and we added our own slight changes to improve the taste.
First we started with Cock brand. Using our Zebra Indian Pan we fried a bit of shallots in olive oil until fragrant, then added 3 cups of water & brought to a boil. Next add 3 tablespoons of Cock brand tom yum paste, bring to a boil, then add about 1/4 cup sliced squid, fresh mushrooms, and a few medium prawns. Simmer until cooked then it's ready to serve. We sprinkled a tiny bit of msg and 1 teaspoon sugar (both optional). That's all you need to prepare the tom yum, and it was pretty good. Nice color and decent flavor if you're lacking other fresh ingredients.
Next we used Aroy-D brand. Again our Zebra Indian Pan we fried a bit of shallots in olive oil until fragrant, then added 2 cups of water & brought to a boil. Next add 2 3/4 tablespoons of Aroy-D brand tom yum paste, Add one thick stalk fresh lemongrass (or more if you are working with thinner stalks) cut as shown in photo below. Also add about 1/4 cup sliced fresh galangal. Keep on high simmer then add about 1/4 cup sliced squid, fresh mushrooms, and a few medium prawns. Simmer for a few minutes. Remove from heat then add a tablespoon fish sauce, and fresh lime juice to suit your taste (we just added juice of a quartered fresh lime). To add some complexity and elegant color, we added two tablespoons of Savoy coconut cream, and stirred.
Results. Definitely the Aroy-D tom yum paste has a richer flavor, one that rivals any tom yum served in restaurants or made from scratch. While Cock brand is good, Aroy-D is a lot better.
Zebra Pan
Fry Shallot in Oil
Prepare Squid
Cock Brand Cooking
Cock Tom Yum Served
Aroy D Tom Yum Paste
Galangal and Lemongrass for Aroy D
Aroy D Brand Cooking
Aroy D Tom Yum Served
Aroy D and Cock Tom Yum
Tom Kha Soup w/Tom Yum Paste
Our packaged, all-natural Amazing Elephant Tom Kha soup is better than home-made, more tasty than what restaurants serve because of the high quality ingredients and sophisticated method. Here we add a bit of tom yum paste, fresh mushrooms, spring onions and shrimp to make it a full meal.
Thai Prawn Soup with Lemongrass, 'Tom Yum Goong'
Tom Yum is both hot and sour, and it's one of the main signature dishes that defines Thai flavor. We've perfected this recipe and assure you it tastes great.
Typically a chef will use a pork or chicken stock then add the basic fresh staples to create the tom yum, as in our video: Railroad Chef Prepares Tom Yum.
Making a stock is really simple and we use chicken here, but feel free to use a bone-in pork also. You may also like our version of tom yum made with a coconut water base.
It's important to use "prik pao" in your tom yum and we have several brands, with slightly varying tastes depending on your preference. In this recipe we are pleased to use Mae Pranom White Can Prik Pao. We also suggest Mae Pranom Prik Pao, Blue Lid.
Also -- See Our Thai Street Vendor Video: Thai Street Vendor Prepares Tom Yum.