Seafood Tom Yum

Ingredients
60 g dried thin Thai-style rice noodles
60 ml fresh lime juice
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp shaved palm sugar
16 large prawns, peeled and deveined with tails left on
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 fresh kaffir lime leaves, roughly torn

Spice paste
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
4 red shallots, peeled and chopped
1 x 4 cm knob fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
1 x 4 cm knob fresh galangal, peeled and chopped
3 birds eye chillies, deseeded and chopped
3 fresh kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced
2 pieces fresh lemon grass, tops discarded, thinly sliced
4 coriander roots, chopped
2 slices fresh pineapple, peeled and chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
To serve: 1 long red chilli, deseeded and sliced, 2 shallots, thinly sliced, 3 tbsp fresh coriander leaves

Preparation method
To make the spice paste, use a mortar and pestle to pound the garlic, shallots, ginger, galangal, chillies, kaffir lime leaves, lemon grass and coriander roots to a coarse paste, Add pineapple and tomatoes and continue to pound to a smoother paste.

Place the spice paste in a saucepan with 1.5 litres cold water and bring to boil over a high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes then allow soup mixture to cool.

Place noodles in a bowl and cover with boiling water until tender. Drain in a colander and refresh under running cold water.

Strain the soup mixture through a sieve into a bowl. Transfer to the saucepan and discard all the solids in the sieve.

Place over a low heat and cook until warm. Add lime juice, fish sauce and palm sugar. When mixture is just simmering, add the prawns and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the noodles, cherry tomatoes and kaffir lime leaves and cook for further 1-2 minutes.

To serve, ladle into four bowls and sprinkle the chilli, shallots and coriander leaves on top.