Spicy Prawn Noodle Soup

This was one of those make-it-up-as-you-go-along recipes that had me licking the bowl afterwards, so felt the need to write it down so I don't forget. Very easy and simple, absolutely can't go wrong. A word of warning - the measurements are estimates, I tend to go by eye, so taste-and-look is the order of the day when putting this together. When I write it down it looks like a long list of ingredients but the only essential ones are prawns (or other fish), noodles, water, oil, flour, garlic and chilli. Everything else, add or take away as your cupboard or your tastebuds dictate.

• Ready In: 20 mins
• Serves: 2-4

Ingredients

• 100  ml  oil
• 3  spring onions, chopped

• THE PRAWNS

• 500  g tiger shrimp, shelled & deveined
• 50  ml dark soy sauce
• 3  teaspoons cornflour

• SOUP PASTE

• 100  ml Thai fish sauce
• 4  garlic cloves, chopped or
• 1  tablespoon  garlic  puree
• 2  teaspoons parsley, chopped
• 1 -2  chili, chopped or
• 1 -2  teaspoon  chili paste
• 1  lime, juice of
• 1  teaspoon turmeric powder
•  half teaspoon five-spice powder

• THE REST

• 1  liter water or 1  liter  fish stock, add gradually to achieve desired consistency
• 1  big  handful bean sprouts
•  cooked noodles

Directions

1. Coat the prawns in the soy sauce and mix in the cornflour.
2. Put the oil in a pan, not too hot. Add the spring onions and start to cook. Add the coated prawns after 1 minute.
3. Mix the soup 'goo' ingredients to make a thick paste, then add to the pan. After a minute, add the water gradually until you have a soup consistency that suits you (bearing in mind that you'll be adding noodles and beansprouts shortly).
4. Add the beansprouts and noodles and cook for a couple of minutes until the beansprouts are cooked but still slightly crunchy.
5. Serve with hunks of bread to soak up the garlicky, spicy liquid and to mop up the bowl!