Thai-style Vegetable Soup - Recipes by Trevor Hopkins

This one is spicy and delicious, and quite a good way of using up any left-over vegetables, especially beanshoots. As always, I make absolutely no claim for authenticity.

Put three pints of water in a large saucepan with a well-fitting lid. Add two chicken stock cubes and a vegetable stock cube. Also add two or three dried Kaffir lime leaves and the juice of a lime. Also add a teaspoon of ground ginger and a teaspoon of sugar.

Bring the stock to the boil, stirring to make sure the stock cubes have dissolved, and then simmer for five minutes. Make sure the cover is on the saucepan while simmering.

While the stock is simmering, prepare the vegetables. Peel a carrot and cut into long thin slices. Peel and slice thinly a small white onion, or slice finely half a dozen spring onions. Top and tail a handful of fine green beans, or thinly slice a couple of runner beans. Deseed and finely slice a couple of thin red chillis - use less (or more!) depending on how spicy you like your soup.

Once the stock has simmered for a while, add all the vegetables to the stock. Also add a handful of beanshoots, half a teaspoon of dried chopped Coriander leaf and two tablespoons of thai-style fish sauce.

Bring the soup back to the boil and simmer for fifteen minutes, again with the saucepan lid tightly fitted.

Remove the Kaffir lime leaves and serve the soup hot in mugs or bowls. You will probably need a spoon! This soup can also be cooled and kept in the fridge until tomorrow, then re-heated in the microwave.

Other vegetables can be added or substituted if available: finely-sliced celery, or slices of mushroom both work well.