There are two traditional Thai soups, Tom Kha and Tom Yum that can be made with shrimp as the protein (add 'goong' to the end of either name e.g. tom yum goong).
Tom Kha is made with coconut milk while Tom Yum is made with tamarind and chile paste. Here are recipes for both.
5-6 C Chicken Stock
[FONT=PC명]⅓[/FONT] C Galangal, sliced
2-3 Cl Garlic, crushed
2 Ea Lemon Grass, crushed
4-6 Ea Kaffir Lime Leaves, chopped
4-5 Ea Thai chilies, chopped
4 Tb Fish Sauce
2 Tb Nam Prik Pao
1 Tb Tamarind Concentrate
1 Can Straw Mushrooms, drained
[FONT=PC명]¾[/FONT] Lb Shrimp, peeled & butterflied
Combine the stock, galangal, garlic, lemon grass, lime leaves, chilies, fish sauce, nam prik pao and tamarind concentrate in a 3-4 quart sauce pan. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes.
Strain the broth and return it to the saucepan. Discard the solids. Add the straw mushrooms to the broth and return it to a simmer.
Just before service add the shrimp and simmer momentarily. The shrimp will cook in a minute.
If you substitute cut-up white meat chicken for the shrimp, add it at the end and simmer for 3-4 minutes to cook it through.
Tom Kha Soup
8 Ea Kaffir Lime Leaves, bruised
2 Cans Coconut Milk (13
½ Fl. Oz. each)
2 C Chicken Broth
6 Slices Galangal
4 Ea Lemon Grass, 2” pieces-crushed
4 Ea Green Chiles, halved
[FONT=PC명]½[/FONT] C Shrimp, butterflied
½ C Whole Straw Mushrooms
½ C Sliced Bamboo Shoots
¼ C Fish Sauce
6 Tb Lime Juice (2-3 limes)
Place 4 of the lime leaves into a large saucepan along with the coconut milk, broth, galangal, lemon grass and chilies.
Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes. Strain the liquid through a fine strainer and discard the contents of the sieve.
Return the strained stock to a boil. Add the remaining lime leaves, chicken, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and fish sauce. Boil gently for 3 minutes.
If you’re using shrimp in place of chicken, add it later and simmer for one minute.
Stir in the lime juice and serve.