A dish that originated in the Mekong Delta region of southern Vietnam, celebrating its abundance of fresh seafood and fruits.

Scale

1/2 cup (4 fl oz / 120 ml) peanut oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

6 cups (1.5 quarts / 1.4 liters) water

1 tablespoon tamarind paste

1/4 cup sugar

4 tablespoons fish sauce

1 cup fresh pineapple, cut into small segments

4 fresh okra, sliced diagonally

10 ounces (280 grams) fresh tiger prawns, peeled and deveined

2 elephant ear stems, finely sliced diagonally (substitute water spinach or watercress if unavailable)

1 large tomato, cut into wedges

1 cup fresh bean sprouts

1/4 cup finely chopped rice paddy herb (substitute: 1/2 tsp cumin powder and juice from 1/4 lemon)

1/2 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Optional: fresh chopped chili, to serve

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Heat peanut oil in a small frying pan over medium heat.
Add minced garlic and fry gently until garlic turns golden (2–3 minutes).
Carefully transfer garlic-infused oil into a small heatproof bowl. Set aside to cool.

Stir in sliced elephant ear stems (or substitute greens) and tomato wedges, letting residual heat lightly cook them.

Place fresh bean sprouts at the bottom of serving bowls.
Ladle hot soup gently over the bean sprouts.
Top each bowl generously with chopped rice paddy herb (or cumin-lemon substitute) and cilantro.
Drizzle a tablespoon of garlic oil over each serving.
Serve hot alongside steamed jasmine rice, and additional fish sauce with chopped chili if desired.

If tiger prawns are unavailable, substitute with large shrimp.

You can also replace the prawns with any fatty fish (catfish, silver perch or salmon)

Adjust the tamarind and sugar to suit your preferred balance of sweet and sour.

Elephant ear stems are traditional but can be substituted easily with water spinach or watercress