Cross-cultural. Really? I mean, here I am trying a recipe that mixes pasta (originally from our Western friends) and tom yum, a favourite Asian flavour. The result? Surprisingly delicious and delectable, and oh my God don’t get me started with the how perfect the tender prawns go with the sour-ish, spicy-ish sauce. Ah-ma-zing.
Even harder to believe that this only took me 15 mins to prepare and I know I could’ve prepped more meals but I only have two days this week before the fasting month (I observe Ramadan), so I made only two. Least I know this meal prep is something I will definitely go back to more frequently.
I first stumbled upon the idea of tom yum pasta when I was dining at this restaurant called Creative Culinaire in Tiong Bahru. I have to say that would be my fav until I made it myself. A little bias, I know, but nothing beats home cooked food especially when you know what goes into it.
I tweaked this recipe adapted from Not Quite Nigella’s Tom Yum Spaghetti to make it a little more healthier. Predominantly whole foods really, except perhaps the tom yum paste. If you can make tom yum paste from scratch, go for it. But 1 tbsp as I’ve used in this recipe won’t be the death of me.
I’ve also swapped the spaghetti with high protein pasta from Pasta Young. The Fitness Grocer gave me a bunch of these to try and I love the excellent protein content in it. Per 100g of cooked pasta yields about 25g of protein. That’s like eating your protein powder. Taste wise… Honestly, it feels a little like wholemeal spag. Chewy and kind of textured. If you don’t have your hands on these, wholemeal spag is fine. Otherwise even normal pasta is an excellent choice.
Lastly, no additional salt is added apart from the fish sauce which in my opinion gives me enough salt for this dish. The result? Sour and spicy (cili padi’s are my fav) meal prep you can have anytime.
Give this a go, my friends. Tell me how you go on my social media – Instagram or Facebook. Would love to see your rendition of this!
2-Meal Prep in 15 Mins: Prawn Tom Yum Pasta
Makes – 2 meals
Time needed – 15 mins
Cost – ~$6.54 per meal
Here’s what you need:
- 200g cooked wholemeal pasta (I’ve used wholemeal penne here)
- 250g prawns, peeled and devein
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 red onion, sliced
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tbsp tom yum paste
- 1 stalk lemongrass, sliced the white part only
- 3 kaffir lime leaves, sliced
- 3-4 cili padi (optional if you don’t want it spicy), sliced
- 150g cherry tomatoes, halved
- 150g button mushrooms, halved
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- Juice of 1/2 a lime
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 cup water
Here’s how you do it:
- Heat non-stick skillet with oil on medium high.
- Toss in onion and garlic and stir-fry for 1-2 mins.
- Add tom yum paste, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and cili padi and cook until fragrant.
- Add tomato paste, cherry tomatoes and mushrooms and stir-fry until the tomato paste has been mixed well with the other ingredients.
- Add 1 cup of water and keep stirring until it thickens up.
- Add lime juice and fish sauce and stir.
- Add prawns and cook until it turns pink. Try not to overcook prawns as it will feel rubbery.
- Add cooked pasta to the sauce and mix well.
- Build your meals or serve hot. 🙂
How much this costs:
*Keep in mind that this numbers are a rough guide. It depends on where you buy it and when. The link I’ve included below is from local online grocery store, Redmart. You can definitely save more money if you purchase in wet markets etc. At the end of the day it’s possible to eat healthy without breaking the bank. Also, ~ denotes the items that should already be in your pantry for a long time or it’s a very small amount.
- 200g cooked wholemeal pasta – $0.40
- 250g tiger prawns, peeled and devein – $6.60
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil – $0.24
- 1 red onion, sliced – $0.20
- 1 tbsp minced garlic – $0.10
- 1 tbsp tom yum paste – $0.60
- 1 stalk lemongrass, sliced the white part only – $0.10
- 3 kaffir lime leaves, sliced – $0.10
- 3-4 cili padi (optional if you don’t want it spicy), sliced – $0.10
- 150g cherry tomatoes, halved – $1.35
- 150g button mushrooms, halved – $2.64
- 3 tbsp tomato paste – $0.50
- Juice of 1/2 a lime – $0.10
- 1 tbsp fish sauce – $0.05
- 1 cup water ~
Total price = ~$13.08
Price per serve = ~ $6.54
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information below is based on the pasta I’ve used (High Protein Pasta from Pasta Young) and about 100g of cooked prawns per meal. It may not be an accurate representation of your meal.
Calories 430 Protein 54g Carbs 32g Fats 10g
