Shrimp in Sour Soup
A classic Filipino soup made with shrimps, tomatoes, mild green chili peppers, radishes, and okra characterized by its tangy-sour flavor usually from the tamarind fruit or local lemons.
Ingredients
- 6 cups Water
- 1 lb Shrimps, with skin and head, seasoned with a little salt
- 3 Plum Tomatoes, quartered
- 2 Onions, chopped
- 1 White Radish, sliced
- 2 mild Green Chile Peppers or Banana Peppers
- 6 Okra, sliced
- 1-1/2 cups freshly squeezed Tamarind juice, or to taste
- 2 Tablespoons Fish sauce, to taste
- 1 10 oz pack fresh Spinach or 1-2 bunches of Kangkong
Instructions
- In a large pan, bring the water to a simmer (almost boiling). Add the tomatoes, onions and sliced radishes and cook until the latter are tender-crisp (half-cooked).
- Add the green chili peppers, okra and tamarind juice and continue to cook for another 3 minutes.
- Add the shrimp and season with salt or fish sauce, to taste. Cook for another 4-5 minutes or until shrimps are cooked and veggies are all tender. Check the seasoning at this point - add more souring agent, fish sauce or even water, if necessary - whatever your taste buds tell you!
- Turn off the heat. Stir in the Kangkong or spinach and then cover and let it wilt and cook for a couple of minutes. The steam from the hot soup should cook it quick. Ladle into bowls and enjoy immediately!
Notes
Notes:
#1 Tamarind can be substituted with multiple accessible alternatives, including powdered tamarind packets, tamarind concentrate, or fresh lemon juice (3 or more lemons), making this Filipino soup achievable regardless of ingredient availability.
#2 The souring agent should be added mid-cooking with vegetables rather than at the beginning or end, allowing the tangy flavor to penetrate ingredients while maintaining the bright, fresh taste that defines sinigang.
#3 Vegetables must be added in stages based on their cooking times, with hard vegetables like radishes going in first, medium-firm vegetables like okra added midway, and delicate leafy greens stirred in after the heat is turned off.
#4 Shrimp heads and shells contribute essential flavor compounds that create depth and natural sweetness in the broth, making whole shrimp with heads preferable to peeled varieties for authentic taste.
#5 Sinigang's versatility extends beyond the protein choice as the same soup framework works with pork, beef, chicken, or fish, demonstrating that the sour broth and vegetable combination defines the dish more than any single ingredient.
Nutrition
Calories: 114kcalCarbohydrates: 11gProtein: 17gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.1gTrans Fat: 0.003gCholesterol: 122mgSodium: 591mgPotassium: 523mgFiber: 3gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 373IUVitamin C: 26mgCalcium: 97mgIron: 1mg
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