- 30 min
- Serves:
- 2
METHOD
1. Place all the spice paste ingredients in a blender and blend to a paste, add a splash of water if necessary.2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan or wok and add the paste. Fry over a gentle heat until fragrant, stirring often, for 10-15 minutes until the oil starts to separate from the paste.
3. Put in the prawns and cook for another 2 minutes before adding the coconut milk and shrimp stock.
4. Bring to the boil and lower the heat to simmer for 5 minutes. Add fish balls and tofu tear in the chopped Vietnamese mint and fresh mint leaves.
5. Add salt and sugar to taste and a splash of water or coconut milk if the mixture looks too thick. Finally, add the kaffir lime leaves.
6. Meanwhile, blanch the noodles in boiling water for a couple of minutes to soften and heat through, then drain and divide between 4 bowls.
7. To serve: add a few bean sprouts and cucumber shreds to the bowls and pour over the soup. Arrange the prawns and mint leaves on top and finish with a squeeze of lime juice. Serve with cooked sambal.
INGREDIENTS
For the spice paste
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 4 stalks of lemongrass, tough outer leaves removed, chopped
- 6 red chilli, optional
- 2 tbsp chilli paste
- 50 g dried shrimps, soaked and drained
- 1 cm fresh galangal
- 1 cm fresh ginger
- 1/2 tsp lime, juice only
For the laksa
- 100 ml corn or vegetable oil
- 250 g prawns, shelled and very finely chopped
- 250 ml coconut milk
- 200 ml shrimp or fish stock, See Cook's note
- small handful chopped fine Vietnamesemint
- Palm or muscovado sugar, to taste
- 200 g fish balls, available in Asian supermarkets (optional)
- 5 pieces dried tofu, optional
- 2 kaffir lime peel
To serve
- 175 g laksa noodles or thin rice noodles
- 100 g bean sprouts
- ½ cucumber, finely shredded
- 150 g cooked shrimps
- handfuls fresh mint, chopped
- 1 lime, juice only
- 50 ml Sambal, See Cook’s note, (optional)
TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS
- You can make laksa with many different ingredients. If you are not a fan or fish balls or tofu, try adding diced chicken instead.
Find a sambal recipe here
You can make shrimp stock by boiling shrimp shells in water and then straining. - Good Food Channel
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