Ingredients
- 500 g (1 lb) raw medium prawns
- 1 1/2 tablespoons oil
- 1 stem lemon grass, white part only, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 small fresh red chillies, cut in half
- 2 fresh kaffir lime leaves
- 1 lime, quartered
- 4 spring onions, sliced on the diagonal
- 500 g (1 lb) dried udon noodles
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 100 g (3 1/2 oz) shiitake mushrooms, halved
- 1 tablespoon fresh coriander leaves
- 500 g (1 lb) baby bok choy, trimmed, leaves separated
Method
1. Peel the prawns, reserving the heads and shells. Gently pull out the dark vein from each prawn back, starting at the head end.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the prawn heads and shells and cook over high heat until pink. Add the lemon grass, garlic, red chillies, kaffir lime leaves, lime quarters, half the spring onion and 2 litres (64 fl oz) water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Pour through a fine strainer into a bowl and discard the solids. Rinse the pan and return the stock to the pan.
3. Add the noodles to a large pan of boiling salted water and cook for 5 minutes, or until tender. Drain well.
4. Bring the stock to the boil. Add the soy sauce and prawns to the pan and cook for 5 minutes, or until the prawns turn pink and are cooked through. Add the remaining ingredients and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
5. Divide the cooked noodles among the soup bowls, then ladle the soup over them. The soup can be served garnished with extra lime wedges if you wish.
