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Classic Hot and Sour Soup
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Ingredients
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Step by step
Method
5 steps
- 1
Bring 6 cups chicken broth to a simmer in a soup pot. Add ¼ cup soy sauce, 4 oz thinly sliced pork if using, 4–5 soaked and sliced shiitake mushrooms, and 1–2 teaspoons chili paste. Simmer about 10 minutes until the mushrooms are tender and the pork is cooked through.
- 2
Stir in ½–1 teaspoon freshly ground white or black pepper, about ⅓–½ cup white vinegar (start lower — you can add more), ½ cup julienned bamboo shoots, ½ cup sliced water chestnuts, optional wood ear or baby corn, and 1 cup cubed soft or medium tofu. Simmer another 10 minutes so the vinegar and pepper bloom.
- 3
Stir 3–4 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 5 tablespoons cold water, then pour it into the pot in a thin stream while stirring. Return to a gentle simmer until the soup looks lightly silky and coats a spoon, 1–2 minutes — not gravy-thick.
- 4
Drizzle 2 lightly beaten eggs in a thin stream over the surface. Wait about 10 seconds, then stir gently once so soft egg ribbons form. Finish with 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil.
- 5
Taste and adjust vinegar, pepper, and chili until it hits both hot and sour. Ladle into bowls and top with thinly sliced scallion. You want a silky, peppery-tart soup with soft tofu ribbons and egg threads — not a thin vinegary broth or a cornstarch sludge that sits heavy.