Gordon Ramsay’s hot and sour soup is chicken stock infused with chilli, ginger, lemongrass, lime juice and fish sauce, strained clean, then finished with mushrooms and prawns. From his BBC Cookalong, ready in 15 minutes.
The technique is infuse and strain: the aromatics flavour the broth but you don’t eat them. Lemongrass and ginger go in roughly chopped so they release everything quickly, then the sieve catches them before the prawns go in. Same approach he uses in his miso salmon where kaffir lime and chilli infuse the broth before the fish poaches in it.
The balance is chilli and pepper for heat, lime juice and fish sauce for sour and salt, sugar to round it off. Get those right and the broth tastes clean and bright. Too sour, add sugar. Too salty, more lime.
Gordon Ramsay Hot and Sour Prawn Soup
Course: Soup, Starter4
5
minutes10
minutes160
kcal15
minutesEasy
Hot and sour prawn soup from Gordon Ramsay’s BBC Cookalong. Chicken stock infused with chilli, ginger, lemongrass, lime juice and fish sauce, strained clean, then finished with shiitake mushrooms, prawns and fresh coriander. Ready in 15 minutes.
Ingredients
800ml (3⅓ cups) chicken stock
1-2 large red chillies, halved lengthways
3cm piece of fresh ginger, roughly chopped
2 lemongrass stalks, roughly chopped
3-4 tbsp lime juice
4 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp caster sugar
Freshly ground black pepper
100g (3.5 oz) shiitake mushrooms, sliced
250g (9 oz) raw prawns, peeled and deveined
Small bunch of fresh coriander, chopped
Directions
- Infuse the broth: Bring the chicken stock to a simmer. Add the chillies, ginger and lemongrass. Squeeze in the lime juice, add the fish sauce, sugar and black pepper. Simmer for a few minutes until fragrant.
- Strain: Pour the broth through a sieve into a clean pan, pressing the aromatics to extract every drop. Discard the solids.
- Cook the prawns: Bring the strained broth back to a simmer. Add the sliced mushrooms and prawns. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the prawns are just pink and cooked through.
- Serve: Stir in the chopped coriander. Ladle into warm bowls.
FAQs
Why strain the broth?
Lemongrass stalks and ginger chunks are there to flavour the liquid, not to eat. Straining gives you a clean, fragrant broth where every sip tastes balanced instead of biting into fibrous lemongrass.
Is this the same as tom yum?
Very close. Tom yum traditionally adds kaffir lime leaves and sometimes tom yum paste. Ramsay’s version skips both, keeping it simpler and faster. The flavour profile is nearly identical though.
Can you use chicken instead of prawns?
Yes. Slice chicken breast thinly and add a minute before the mushrooms so it cooks through. The broth works with any protein because the flavour is in the liquid.
What mushrooms work best?
Shiitake hold their shape and add earthy depth that pairs with the lemongrass. Enoki work for something more delicate, like Ramsay uses in his miso soup. Avoid button mushrooms, they can’t stand up to the chilli and lime.
