Thai-inspired Shrimp and Rice Soup

This is easy and so tasty. If you can't find green curry paste, you can use red curry paste instead.

2 cups cooked Jasmine rice (1 cup uncooked)
3 Tbsp. butter, divided
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup sweet onion, diced
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, sliced (include seeds and ribs for extra heat, otherwise, remove seeds and ribs and dice the pepper instead
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1-inch fresh ginger, minced
1 small stalk fresh lemongrass, grated (optional)
2-3 Tbsp. green curry paste
2 (12-oz) cans coconut cream milk, unsweetened
1 quart vegetable broth or stock
1/4 c. chopped Thai basil
1/4 c. chopped cilantro
1 medium lime, juiced

Cook rice and set aside if done before you need to add it. Meanwhile, melt 2 Tbsp butter in a large stockpot. Salt and pepper shrimp to taste and cook on medium-high heat until shrimp turns pink, about 2-3 minutes. Remove shrimp to a bowl.

Melt 1 Tbsp. butter to pan, add onion, red bell pepper, jalapeno pepper, and cook until the onion is translucent. Add ginger and garlic and lemongrass if using, and cook about a minute or until fragrant. Add green curry paste to the pan and incorporate it into the vegetables until well-mixed. Add vegetable broth and stir well. Then whisk in coconut cream milk, one can at a time until blended.

Bring to a boil and simmer about 5 minutes. Add cooked rice and shrimp and heat an additional 5 minutes. Stir in cilantro, basil and lime juice. Serve in large bowls for a meal, or smaller bowls to go with a salad or sandwich.

Makes 4 hearty servings or 6 side-dish servings.

**I'm going to try substituting rice noodles for the rice for a Thai noodle soup.