Short on time, big on flavour: RecipeTin Eats’ 20-minute laksa (2024)

My best laksa takes an hour to make, and involves a semi-homemade soup broth.

This 20-minute version is 90 per cent as good. It’s almost irritatingly too good because now I’m wondering whether anyone will bother using my best laksa recipe when you can make something nearly as good in less than half the time.

I’ve deployed a few tricks to deliver top-shelf results so quickly. Cook off the laksa paste really well and reduce the coconut milk. Both these steps intensify the umami in the broth. And use prawns as the protein, which drives home the prawn flavour-base of the laksa paste.

The SOS checklist

• Fewer than 12 ingredients ✔ (excluding optional ingredients)
• Ready in under 30 minutes ✔

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Notes

• I highly recommend using Por Kwan laksa paste, a popular brand that is widely available at Asian grocers. If you cannot find it and are using a supermarket laksa paste, cook the paste with the 2 tablespoons of fish sauce (rather than adding it at the end) to develop extra umami before adding the coconut milk. (Don’t add more fish sauce to the broth at step 5 or it will be too salty!)
• Not all coconut milk is created equal. Cheaper brands contain more water than coconut, which means less flavour! Aim for 80 per cent coconut or more (check the ingredients label). Price is a clue to quality.
• While it may sound odd to use chicken stock for a prawn laksa, it’s far better than using store-bought fish stock from supermarkets.
• Tofu puffs can be found in the fridge at the supermarket with the Asian ingredients as well as at Asian stores and some grocers. They’re spongy delights that absorb the flavourful broth so it squirts into your mouth when you bite them – an essential part of the laksa experience.
• Crispy fried shallots are available at Asian grocers and the Asian aisle at large supermarkets. The crispy, salty fried shallot spices add texture and pops of salt to anything you sprinkle them on (and I sprinkle them on a LOT of things).

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