Hot and Sour Soup Recipe
This is a classic Chinese-American soup that balances spicy, savory, and sour flavors. The key to the texture is rehydrating dried mushrooms for a chewy bite and thickening the broth with a cornstarch slurry at the end. The egg is drizzled in while stirring to create thin ribbons, not clumps.
Ingredients
For the Soup Base
- 0.5 oz dried Shiitake mushrooms
- 0.5 oz dried Wood ear mushrooms
- 3 quarts chicken stock
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/2 Tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 3/4 tsp ground white pepper
- 6 Tbsp white vinegar
For the Add-ins & Thickener
- 12 oz firm tofu, cut into thin strips
- 1 (8 oz) can bamboo shoots, julienned
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 large eggs, beaten
Rehydrate the Mushrooms and Start the Broth
Place the shiitake and wood ear mushrooms in two separate bowls and cover them with hot water. Let them soak for at least an hour, or until they are soft and fully rehydrated. Once they’re ready, slice them into thin strips.
In a large pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add the sugar, salt, both soy sauces, and sesame oil. Let it simmer for a few minutes to allow the flavors to combine.
Add the Solids
Add the sliced rehydrated mushrooms to the simmering broth, followed by the tofu and bamboo shoots. Let the soup return to a simmer.
Thicken the Soup and Add the Egg
In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch and cold water together until there are no lumps. This is your slurry.
While stirring the soup, slowly pour in about half of the slurry. You should see the soup begin to thicken almost immediately. If you want it thicker, continue to add more slurry until it reaches the consistency you like.
Make sure the soup is at a steady simmer. Stir the soup in a constant circular motion and slowly drizzle in the beaten eggs.
This technique creates the classic egg ribbons. If you pour the egg in without stirring, you’ll get scrambled egg clumps.
Finish with Vinegar and Pepper
Turn off the heat and stir in the ground white pepper and vinegar.
Taste the soup and adjust it to your preference. If it’s not sour enough, add another splash of vinegar. If you want more heat, add a bit more white pepper.
Hot and Sour Soup
Ingredients
For the Soup Base
- 0.5 oz dried Shiitake mushrooms
- 0.5 oz dried Wood ear mushrooms
- 3 quarts chicken stock
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/2 Tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 3/4 tsp ground white pepper
- 6 Tbsp white vinegar
For the Add-ins & Thickener
- 12 oz firm tofu cut into thin strips
- 1 can bamboo shoots 8 oz, julienned
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 large eggs beaten
Method
- Soak shiitake and wood ear mushrooms in hot water for 1 hour until soft. Slice into strips.
- Bring chicken stock to boil with sugar, salt, soy sauces, and sesame oil.
- Add sliced mushrooms, tofu strips, and bamboo shoots. Return to simmer.
- Whisk cornstarch with cold water to make slurry.
- Slowly stir in half the slurry until soup begins to thicken. Add more if needed.
- While stirring soup in circular motion, slowly drizzle in beaten eggs to create ribbons.
- Turn off heat, stir in white pepper and vinegar.
- Adjust seasoning with additional vinegar or white pepper to taste.
