4 servings

Hands on: 20 minutes

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Total time: 20 minutes

The exotic-sounding ingredients for this wonderfully aromatic soup can be found at Asian groceries, international markets and DeKalb Farmers Market. Advise your guests not to eat the lemon grass stalks, lime leaves or galangal (a root that tastes like a milder, more floral ginger) — although traditionally left in the soup, they are not particularly chewable.

3 cups water or light chicken stock

2 cloves garlic, minced

5 kaffir lime leaves

3 thin slices fresh or dried galangal

1/4 cup fish sauce

2 stalks lemon grass, lower 1/3 only, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 green onions, thinly sliced crosswise

1/2 cup thinly sliced straw mushrooms

5 hot green Thai chile peppers, stems removed

8 ounces shrimp, shelled and deveined

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon roasted chili paste

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

In a large pot over medium heat, bring the water or stock to a boil. Add the garlic, lime leaves, galangal, fish sauce, lemon grass and green onions, then the mushrooms and chile peppers. Simmer for 2 minutes. Add the shrimp and reheat to a boil. Cook until the shrimp are pink and opaque, no longer than 1 minute. In a serving bowl, stir together the lime juice and chili paste. Pour the soup in the bowl, stir and garnish with the cilantro.

Per serving: 132 calories (percent of calories from fat, 23), 13 grams protein, 13 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 3 grams fat (1 gram saturated), 88 milligrams cholesterol, 125 milligrams sodium.