The fresh chilies should be bruised in a mortar and pestle.The dried chilies should be heated first, then crumbled into the fresh chilies. Beat the lemon grass with the grinder of the mortar and pestle or the back of a cleaver.

 

Heat about 3 cups of water to boiling point, add all the ingredients, and stir constantly until cooked (it doesn't take long for mushrooms, longer for chicken or shrimp, and longest for beef).

 

Variation: Use 3 cups of thin coconut milk instead of water, the result is Tom Kha, rather than Tom Yum.