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Vegan Tom Yum Soup with Rice Noodles and Puffed Tofu

This easy vegan Tom Yum soup is sweet, spicy, sour, super comforting and loaded with vegetables, crispy puffed tofu, and chewy vermicelli rice noodles. It is the easiest ever version especially when you don't have access to some of the fresh ingredients that are crucial in Thai cuisine.

Tom Yum soup, as one of the most famous and iconic Thai dishes, probably needs little introduction. It's vibrant, hearty, comforting, packed full of flavors and nutrition. Did you know what Tom and Yum actually mean though? Tom, means to boil in Thai and Yum, means the process of mixing to achieve the flavor profile of sweet, sour, and spicy.

The holy trinity in Tom Yum soup is lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves, and galangal, these three ingredients are absolutely crucial to an authentic and flavorful Tom Yum soup together with Thai chili pepper and lime juice.

However, I live in the US and surprise surprise, I couldn't possibly find any of the three ingredients at my regular grocery store and I don't always have the time to go to the Asian grocery stores to hunt down these ingredients either, in which case, Tom Yum paste to the rescue!

You can find Tom Yum paste from many brands but mine is from Chef's Choice, they're a Vegan Thai family owned brand and I love the quality and authenticity of their products!

To make this soup more like a full meal, I added some vermicelli rice noodles and air fryer puffed tofu! So in one comforting steamy bowl, we have vegetables, carb, protein, and of course lots of yum ^^

This recipe takes only about 20 to 30 minutes to make and only one pot! If you try it please tag me on Instagram and Tiktok I'd love to see them!


INGREDIENTS:

*makes 2 servings

14 oz extra firm tofu

4 oz vermicelli noodles

1 small onion

8 oz cherry tomato

8 oz button mushroom, or better, oyster mushroom if you can find them!

1 zucchini

1 yellow squash

6 - 7 key lime, 1/4 cup juiced

2 cup vegetable stock

1 1/2 tablespoon Tom Yum paste

1 tablespoon Thai chili paste

Cooking oil

Cilantro for garnish


TO MAKE:

- Drain and pat dry the tofu, cut into about 1 inch cubes and air fry at 400°F for 15 - 20 minutes till they're golden crispy, they should naturally puff up in this process;

- Chop the onion to small square pieces, half the cherry tomatoes, half or quarter the mushrooms depending on their sizes, and cut the zucchini and yellow squash into half moon shaped slices;

- Heat a small drizzle of oil in a thick pot, sauté the onions first till softened, about 2 - 3 minutes;

- Add the cherry tomatoes, stir and cook till they're soft and starting to release the juice;

- Add the Tom Yum paste into the pot, stir to mix in don't let it burn on the bottom, then slowly pour in the vegetable stock, add in the mushrooms, cover with lid and bring to a boil;

- Add in the zucchini, yellow squash, and stir in the Thai chili paste, please note that Thai chili paste has a unique taste that's not just spicy but quite sweet, I do not recommend substituting with other kinds here;

- Cover with lid and bring to a boil again, then remove the lid, and let the soup simmer for 20 minutes, stir occasionally;

- If using rice noodle, soak the noodles in boiling hot water for 10 - 15 minutes till they're soft and chewy, drain the water and add the noodles to your serving bowls;

- When the soup is done simmering, turn off the heat, and add in the lime juice, stir to mix well, do not continue to heat or bring to a boil again after you add the lime juice or the soup can turn bitter;

- Pour the soup over the rice noodles, garnish with cilantro, serve hot, enjoy!

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