Thai Gaeng Som with Farmers-Market Squash, Green Beans and Tamarind Broth

Bring the water or stock to a boil in a wide saucepan. Whisk in the sour curry paste until it fully dissolves and the broth turns a deep orange-red, then simmer 5 minutes to bloom the aromatics.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons Thai sour curry paste (nam prik gaeng som), or 2 tablespoons red curry paste plus 1 teaspoon shrimp paste
• 5 cups water or light chicken stock
• 3 tablespoons tamarind concentrate, dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce, plus more to taste
• 1 tablespoon palm sugar or light brown sugar
• 1 pound kabocha or butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 8 ounces green beans or long beans, cut into 2-inch lengths
• 1 cup daikon or peeled broccoli stem, cut into batons
• 12 ounces large shrimp, peeled and deveined (or 12 ounces firm white fish)
• 1 cup shredded green cabbage
• 1 lime, cut into wedges
• Steamed jasmine rice, for serving

Instructions

1. Bring the water or stock to a boil in a wide saucepan. Whisk in the sour curry paste until it fully dissolves and the broth turns a deep orange-red, then simmer 5 minutes to bloom the aromatics.
2. Stir in the tamarind water, fish sauce and palm sugar. Taste the broth now — it should be aggressively sour first, then salty, with only a whisper of sweetness behind. Adjust with more tamarind or fish sauce as needed.
3. Add the squash cubes and simmer 8 to 10 minutes, until a knife slides in with slight resistance. Squash that fully collapses will cloud the broth.
4. Add the daikon or broccoli stem batons and cook 3 minutes, then add the green beans and cook 3 minutes more until they are bright and just tender.
5. Slide in the shrimp and cabbage, turn the heat to low, and poach gently for 2 to 3 minutes until the shrimp curl and turn opaque. Do not let the broth boil hard once the seafood is in.
6. Taste one final time and correct the balance — a squeeze of lime brightens a broth that has gone flat, an extra splash of fish sauce anchors one that tastes thin.
7. Ladle into bowls, making sure each gets a mix of squash, beans and shrimp, and serve with jasmine rice and lime wedges on the side.
8. Gaeng som is southern Thailand's answer to a vegetable garden in high season — a thin, fiercely sour curry with no coconut milk at all, which surprises cooks who expect every Thai curry to be creamy. Without fat to round it off, the broth lives entirely on the tension between tamarind sourness, fish sauce salt and chili heat, which is exactly why it welcomes whatever the market offers: squash in late summer, bamboo shoots in spring, greens in cooler months. Thai home cooks treat the seasoning as a live adjustment rather than a recipe, tasting and correcting right up to the moment it hits the table.

Nutrition (estimated, per serving)

• Calories: 310 kcal
• Protein: 26g
• Fat: 7g
• Carbohydrates: 37g
• Fiber: 6g
• Sugar: 12g
• Sodium: 1180mg