Hot and Sour Soup
User Reviews
5.0
270 reviews
Excellent
-
Prep Time
20 mins
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Cook Time
20 mins
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Total Time
40 mins
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Servings
4 people
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Calories
216 kcal
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Course
Main Course, Appetizer, Soup
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Cuisine
Chinese
Hot and Sour Soup
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Recipe video above. A firm Chinese starter favourite! A glossy soup broth that's savoury, sour and as spicy as you want it to be, filled with mushrooms, tofu and bamboo shoots. Skip the chicken to make it meat free, or add shrimp/prawns or fish pieces. Serves 6 - 8 as a starter, or 4 as a light meal.
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Ingredients
- 220 g / 7oz chicken breast
- 12 dried shiitake mushrooms (or 150g/5oz fresh) (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup Wood ear mushrooms , chopped 1.5cm/ 3/5" pieces (Note 1)
Hot and sour soup broth:
- 1 tsp dried chilli / red pepper flakes , adjust spice to taste (Note 2)
- 2 tsp dark soy sauce (Note 3)
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce (Note 3)
- 1 tsp ginger , finely grated
- 1/2 tsp white pepper (sub black)
- 6 cups (1.5L/1.5qt) chicken or veg stock/broth , low sodium
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 cup (65 ml) white vinegar (adjust to taste)
Soup:
- 125 g / 4oz firm tofu (~ 1 cup) , cut into 1.2cm / 0.5" cubes (Note 4)
- 1/4 cup bamboo shoots , thinly sliced (Note 5)
- 2 eggs , whisked
- 1/4 cup (40g) cornstarch/cornflour
- 1/4 cup (125 ml) water
- salt to taste
- 1 shallot/scallion , finely sliced
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Instructions
- Cover shiitake mushrooms with plenty of boiling water. Stand 20 - 30 minutes until soft, drain, then slice thinly. (Discard or reserve liquid for other use)
Poached chicken:
- Place chicken broth, ginger, soy sauces, chilli, sugar, pepper and sesame oil in a large pot over medium high heat.
- Once simmering, add chicken, cover and reduce heat so it's simmering.
- Cook 10 minutes, remove chicken and shred.
Finish Soup:
- Add vinegar, shiitake, wood ear mushrooms, bamboo shoots, tofu and shredded chicken into the soup.
- Stir, simmer for 10 minutes.
- Mix cornflour with water. While stirring soup at a medium pace, slowly pour the cornflour mixture in (ensures no lumps).
- When it starts simmering again, stir constantly and slowly pour egg in a thin stream - this will create the signature "egg ribbons".
- Taste - add salt if desired, more chilli if you want.
- Add shallots and serve!
Notes
- Mushrooms - for the most authentic flavour, use dried shiitake mushrooms. The flavour is more intense than fresh, and the texture is better. If you discover it's still firm in the middle when slicing, put in broth first to finish rehydrating. Best sub is sis brown/cremini mushrooms, or other Asian mushrooms.
- Wood ear mushrooms are also an essential ingredient for a true Chinese restaurant experience (see post for more info). Sold at some grocery stores (Harris Farms) and Asian groceries. If dried, soak with shiitake for 30 min. Can be skipped - use more shiitake.
- Chilli - authentic versions use finely chopped dried Asian chillies. Deseed to make them less spicy. Red pepper / chilli flakes is a fine to use too - really can't taste the difference.
- Soy sauce - can sub dark soy with more light soy, or both for all purpose soy sauce. Do not use just dark soy sauce, broth flavour too strong.
- Tofu - must be firm so it doesn't disintegrate when soup is stirred. Just feel the packet - the firmer the better (but not rock hard!). If you can only find soft tofu, stir it in gently right at the end.
- Bamboo shoots - sold sliced in tins sold at large supermarkets and Asian grocery stores. Need approx 1/3 of a 230g/7oz can. Use leftovers in stir fries, terrific texture!
- Storage / reheating - It keeps 100% perfectly in the fridge, I've been known to keep it up to 5 days. Reheat on the stove. Freezing will affect the thickness because cornflour/cornstarch doesn't work as well once frozen. Easy fix - just thaw, reheat and add more cornflour/water mixture until it's the thickness you want (follow same recipe steps to slowly add while stirring).
Nutrition Information
Show Details
Calories
216cal
(11%)
Carbohydrates
19g
(6%)
Protein
21g
(42%)
Fat
6g
(9%)
Saturated Fat
1g
(5%)
Cholesterol
93mg
(31%)
Sodium
501mg
(21%)
Potassium
622mg
(18%)
Fiber
1g
(4%)
Sugar
2g
(4%)
Vitamin A
130IU
(3%)
Vitamin C
1.6mg
(2%)
Calcium
55mg
(6%)
Iron
1.7mg
(9%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 4people
Amount Per Serving
Calories 216 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 216cal | 11% |
| Carbohydrates | 19g | 6% |
| Protein | 21g | 42% |
| Fat | 6g | 9% |
| Saturated Fat | 1g | 5% |
| Cholesterol | 93mg | 31% |
| Sodium | 501mg | 21% |
| Potassium | 622mg | 13% |
| Fiber | 1g | 4% |
| Sugar | 2g | 4% |
| Vitamin A | 130IU | 3% |
| Vitamin C | 1.6mg | 2% |
| Calcium | 55mg | 6% |
| Iron | 1.7mg | 9% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Genuine Reviews
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5.0
270 reviews
Excellent
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