Isn't it great that one of the dishes that have pretty much put Thai cuisine on the world map is so easy to make? Tom Yum Goong [1] is a main course soup made by simply cooking whole shrimp gently in simmering infused broth and seasoning it to taste. If you can make a good cup of tea, chances are you'd be good at making Thai hot and sour soup as well.
For the sake of simplicity and practicality, let's not talk about the version of Tom Yam I had growing up or the version you had growing up for they may be different from one another and/or from the version featured here. Let's not talk about the various versions of Tom Yam documented in cookbooks from a bygone era by so and so who died in such and such year for the fact that most of us today have never had or continue to make them that way has rendered such discussions useful merely as an intellectual exercise with little relevance.
If I'm right in assuming that the purpose at hand is to replicate the most common version of this iconic Thai soup which you've most likely encountered (and fallen in love with) at your local Thai restaurant, then I hope what you find here will serve you well.
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