Tom Yam Pla (Thai Spicy and Sour Soup with Fish)

For the Fish: Place snapper in a medium bowl, add fish sauce, and toss to coat. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes or up to 4 hours. Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik For the Fish Stock: Meanwhile, in a large pot, combine tomatoes, lemongrass, onion, galangal, lime leaves, fish sauce, and 2 quarts (1.9L) water and bring to a bowl over high heat. Add reserved head and bones, then lower heat to maintain a simmer. Cook, skimming any scum that accumulates on the surface, until liquid is reduced by half, about 30 minutes. Strain liquid through a fine-mesh strainer set over a 2-quart saucepan (you should have about 1 quart; 945ml) and set aside. Discard head, bones, and aromatics. Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik For the Soup: Heat a 10-inch cast iron skillet or carbon steel pan over high heat until lightly smoking. Add dried chiles and cook until lightly charred on one side, making sure to move them around to avoid burning, 20 to 30 seconds. Transfer chiles to a small bowl. Add tomatoes to pan and cook over high heat until charred on all sides, making sure to move them around to avoid burning, about 3 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with chiles and set aside. Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik Bring reserved fish stock in saucepan to a boil over high heat. Add galangal, lemongrass, and shallots, along with charred chiles and tomatoes, and allow aromatics to infuse stock, about 1 minute. Add snapper, making sure it is submerged in the stock, and cook until snapper is opaque and just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Add lime leaves, fresh chiles, and fish sauce, and remove from heat. Stir in lime juice (the color of the stock will turn opaque) and culantro. Serve immediately with cooked jasmine rice. Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik