Soupe épicée aux légumes et aux crevettes (Kaeng Liang)

In a mortar, pound the white peppercorns first until cracked, then add the shallots, shrimp paste and soaked dried shrimp. Pound everything together into a rough, sticky, fragrant paste — a food processor works too, with a splash of water to help it along. Cracking the peppercorns first is what releases their full peppery bite.

• 1 tbsp white peppercorns
• 100 g shallots
• 1 tbsp shrimp paste
• 2 tbsp dried shrimp

✅ C'est prêt quand : the mixture looks rough and sticky, with no large pieces of shallot left

Bring the water or stock to a boil in a pot. Stir in the pounded paste and let it dissolve into the liquid, simmering for 3–4 minutes until the broth turns fragrant and lightly cloudy. This builds the whole flavour of the soup, so give it this short head start before adding anything else.

• 1 litre water or stock

✅ C'est prêt quand : the broth smells peppery and fragrant and looks slightly cloudy