Shrimp in Coconut-Ginger Broth with Bok Choy, Mushrooms, Zucchini Noodles

Wild shrimp gently poached in a fragrant broth of bone broth, coconut milk, ginger, garlic, and lime, ladled over zucchini noodles with tender bok choy and shiitake. Finished with scallions and a spoonful of fermented chile for heat and depth, it's a nourishing, slurpable bowl that's ready in about 30 minutes.

Yield: Serves 4 · Active: 25 min · Total: 30 min · Year-round (in North America, zucchini peaks in summer and bok choy in spring and fall) · Best eaten: midday or early evening

Ingredients

Coconut-ginger broth

• 1 tbsp coconut oil

• 2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated

• 3 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 stalk lemongrass, bruised and cut into pieces (optional)

• 3 cups chicken bone broth

• 1 can (13.5 oz) full-fat coconut milk

• 1 tbsp fish sauce or coconut aminos

• Juice of 1 lime

• ½ tsp Baja Gold sea salt, to taste

Bowl

• 1½ lb large wild shrimp, peeled and deveined

• 4 oz shiitake mushrooms, sliced

• 4 baby bok choy, halved

• 3 medium zucchini, spiralized

• 3 scallions, thinly sliced

• Fresh cilantro or Thai basil

• Fermented chile paste, to taste

• Lime wedges

Method

1. Build the broth. Heat the coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the ginger, garlic, and lemongrass and stir 1 minute, until fragrant. Add the broth and coconut milk and simmer gently 10 minutes to infuse. Remove the lemongrass.

2. Cook the vegetables. Add the shiitake and simmer 3 minutes, then add the bok choy and simmer 2 minutes more.

3. Poach the shrimp. Add the shrimp and simmer gently 2–3 minutes.

4. Season. Stir in the fish sauce and lime juice, and taste for salt.

5. Assemble. Divide the raw zucchini noodles among deep bowls, then ladle the hot broth, shrimp, and vegetables over them. The hot broth gently warms the noodles while keeping them crisp-tender.

6. Finish with scallions, cilantro or Thai basil, a spoonful of fermented chile, and a lime wedge.

Storage: Store the broth and the zucchini noodles separately. The broth with vegetables keeps up to 3 days refrigerated; add shrimp when reheating, or reheat gently so they don't toughen.

Nourishment Notes

Wild shrimp — lean complete protein, selenium, iodine, B12, and astaxanthin.

Bone broth — gelatin, glycine, and minerals.

Coconut milk — lauric acid and a rich, creamy body.

Ginger, garlic, and lemongrass — gingerols, allicin, and citral, all traditionally used to support digestion.

Bok choy — calcium, vitamin C, and glucosinolates.

Shiitake — beta-glucans and ergothioneine.

Fermented chile — capsaicin, plus live cultures in raw, unpasteurized versions (add it at the table, off the heat).

For the female cycle: Ginger is well studied for easing menstrual cramps, and the warm broth's minerals and gelatin make this especially comforting during the menstrual phase.

Sourcing

• Shrimp — wild-caught U.S. Gulf, U.S. Atlantic, or Argentine red shrimp, with no added sodium tripolyphosphate

• Fish sauce — made from just anchovies and sea salt, like Red Boat; or Coconut Secret coconut aminos (organic)

• Fermented chile — homemade (lacto-ferment chopped chiles in a 3% salt brine for 1–2 weeks; see my Ferment Foundations post), or a naturally fermented chile paste with no added sugar or preservatives

• Coconut milk — organic and full-fat, with just coconut and water; Native Forest Simple comes in BPA-free cans

• Chicken bone broth — homemade from pasture-raised chicken, or Bonafide Provisions (organic, sold frozen)

• Bok choy, shiitake, zucchini, scallions, ginger, garlic, lemongrass, herbs, and limes — organic, from a farmers' market or Asian grocer

• Coconut oil — organic, virgin, and unrefined

• Baja Gold sea salt

— Anna aka Food Marshall