MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06
 
      Title: Ann Oliver's Hot Sour Crayfish Soup
 Categories: Soups, Crayfish, Chilies, Fruit
      Yield: 2 Servings
 
      1 kg Crayfish; in sections *
           HOT SOUR CRAYFISH SOUP:
           Crayfish; broken head/juice
           -including shells and any
           -scraps.
    500 g  Small tomatoes; very ripe
    250 g  Yellow onions;
           -roughly chopped,
           -without peeling
      3    Lemongrass stems;
           -roughly chopped,
           -without peeling
      1 sm Fresh ginger knob
      3    Kaffir lime leaves
    1/2 ts Whole white pepper
      1    Birdseye chilli;
           -finely chopped
           Crayfish, legs & joints
           THEN TO FINISH SOUP:
      2 tb Rice wine vinegar
      5 g  Sweet pickled ginger;
           -julienned
      1    Taro stem, 10 cm long;
           -peeled & cut into 8 pieces
     50 g  Palm sugar
      1 sl Fresh pineapple;
           -very ripe, peeled,
           -cored and finely sliced
     10    Mint leaves
     10    Rau ram leaves
 
  * Crayfish is used in sections in the following manner. This is
    part of a 3-course meal and parts of the crayfish are used in
    all three recipes.

  Select the three best tomatoes, seed and skin them, julienne the
  largest pieces and put them with the ingredients used to finish the
  soup. Reserving the seeds and skin, roughly chop the remaining
  tomatoes. Put the tomatoes, body pieces, onion, lemongrass, ginger,
  lime leaves, pepper and half of the chilli into a saucepan, add two
  litres of cold water and place it on very low heat. Bring the stock
  to the boil, skimming any scum that rises to the surface, then simmer
  gently for 30 minutes.
  
  Turn the heat off, add the legs, pushing them under, and allow them to
  remain in the stock just long enough for them to change to a bright
  red. Remove them with tongs, then, when cool enough to handle, remove
  the meat and return the shells to the stock. When the stock has stood
  for an hour, carefully ladle off 600ml and strain it through your
  finest sieve into a clean saucepan. Strain the remaining stock
  through a course sieve and set to one side. This and half of the leg
  and joint meat is reserved for the souffle.
  
  Just before serving the soup, return the stock to heat and on low heat
  bring it to a simmer, but do not allow it to boil. Add the vinegar,
  ginger and taro stems, then add sufficient palm sugar to give it a
  pleasing sweet sour taste. Add more chilli if necessary. Divide the
  reserved tomato julienne, pineapple and half of the leg and joint
  meat between the two bowls, then add the soup, garnish with the
  leaves and serve immediately.
  
  To truly appreciate the flavour of this style of soup, it should be
  warm, but not scalding hot, as extreme heat masks the intense and
  diverse flavours of the soup.
  
  This is part one of a three-part menu using 1 kg crayfish.
  Part two is crayfish souffle.
  Part three is grilled crayfish tail.
  
  Recipe by Ann Oliver from The Advertiser, Food and Wine section,
  January 28th 1998

  From: Kevin Jcjd Symons
  Date: 29 Jan 98
 
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