Thai Shiitake Mushroom and Shrimp Soup

This is another delicious and very healthy recipe I found in a Cooking Light magazine. I’ve altered it a little bit, but the results still turned out great. I had no idea where to find lemongrass stalk, as it definitely wasn’t in any of our local grocery stores. Luckily, I found an awesome Asian mart right by my house. They had so many great ingredients! I’ll definitely be cooking more Asian dishes soon. You could omit the lemongrass if you can’t find it, but I do think it adds a great flavor to the dish.

We used frozen shrimp because it’s cheaper and we think it tastes just as good as fresh shrimp for recipes like this. Feel free to substitute fresh shrimp. If you don't like things too spicy, use only 1/2 of the habanero pepper. Also, be careful cutting it! I don't know if I just have super sensitive skin, but my face and arm were burning for hours because I accidentally scratched them before washing my hands well. A few other tips: you can use the same lime for the rind and juice. If you’d like it a little less “soupy”, you could use 4 cups of chicken broth instead of 6. This recipe can easily serve 4-6.

Ingredients

• 6 cups fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 a lime rind – peeled with a carrot peeler
• 1 lemongrash stalk, halved and crushed (just lightly mash it with a fork to release some flavor)
• 1 habanero chile pepper, minced
• 1.5 cups shiitake mushrooms (about 3 oz), thinly sliced
  
• 3/4 pound large frozen shrimp, peeled
• 1/4 cup lime juice (about the juice of one lime)
• 2 tsp. fish sauce
• 1 medium tomato, cut into wedges
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 cup light coconut milk
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro

Directions

1. Combine broth, lime rind, lemongrass, and habanero in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook 5 minutes.
   
2. Add mushrooms and shrimp; cook an additional 3 minutes (or until shrimp are done).
   
3. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut milk and cilantro. Remove lemongrass stalk and lime leaves before serving.