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Hot and Sour Soup

Date:
Jan. 13, 2025, 4:47 p.m.

Topics:
chinese soup asian

Serves 6-8 as an appetizer. To get an authentic-tasting hot and sour soup recipe that would use only inventory from our local supermarket, we created the "hot" side of the soup with two heat sources—a full tsp of distinctive, penetrating white pepper and a little chili oil. To make slicing the pork chop easier, freeze it for 15 minutes. We prefer the distinctive flavor of Chinese black vinegar; look for it in Asian supermarkets. If you can't find it, a combination of red wine vinegar and balsamic vinegar approximates its flavor. This soup is very spicy. For a less spicy soup, omit the chili oil altogether or add only 1 tsp Beating an egg with cornstarch before drizzling it into the thickened soup helps the egg to set up on the soup's surface—keeping it light, wispy, and cohesive rather than tough or curdled.

Ingredients

  • 7 oz extra-firm tofu, drained
  • 4 Tb soy sauce, divded 1 + 3
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
  • 3 Tb cornstarch + 1 tsp + ½ tsp
  • 1 pork loin chop, boneless, center-cut, ½" thick, about 6 oz, trimmed of fat, cut into 1" by ⅛" matchsticks
  • 3 Tb cold water, + 1 additional tsp
  • 1 large egg
  • 6 C low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 C bamboo shoots, from 1 5 oz can, sliced lengthwise into ⅛"-thick strips
  • 4 oz fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps sliced ¼" thick, about 1 C
  • 5 Tb black Chinese vinegar
  • 2 tsp chili oil, see note above
  • 1 tsp ground white pepper
  • 3 medium scallions, sliced thin

Instructions

Step 1
  1. Place tofu in pie plate and set heavy plate on top, weight with 2 heavy cans and let stand at least 15 minutes (tofu should release about ½ C liquid).
  2. Whisk 1 Tb soy sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil, and 1 tsp cornstarch in medium bowl
  3. Toss in pork with marinade and set aside for at least 10 minutes, no more than 30 minutes.
  4. Combine 3 Tb cornstarch with 3 Tb water in small bowl and mix thoroughly.Set aside, leaving spoon in bowl.
  5. Mix remaining ½ tsp cornstarch with remaining 1 tsp water in small bowl.Add egg and beat with fork until combined. Set aside.
Step 2
  1. Bring broth to boil in large saucepan set over medium-high heat, reduce heat to medium-low and add bamboo shoots and mushrooms.
  2. Simmer until mushrooms are just tender, about 5 minutes.
  3. While broth simmers, dice tofu into ½" cubes.
  4. Add tofu and pork and marinade to soup, stirring to separate any pieces of pork that stick together.
  5. Continue to simmer until pork is no longer pink, about 2 minutes.
Step 3
  1. Stir cornstarch mixture to recombine, add to soup, and increase heat to medium-high
  2. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soup thickens and turns translucent, about 1 minute.
  3. Stir in vinegar, chili oil, pepper, and remaining 3 Tb soy sauce; turn off heat.
  4. Without stirring soup, use soupspoon to slowly drizzle very thin streams of egg mixture into pot in circular motion
  5. Let soup sit 1 minute.
  6. Return saucepan to medium-high heat and bring soup to gentle boil, then immediately remove from heat.
  7. Gently stir soup once to evenly distribute egg.
  8. Ladle into bowls and top with scallions.
  9. Turn off heat so surface of soup is calm, then use spoon to drizzle egg onto surface in thin streams.
  10. Let sit for 1 minute
  11. Turn heat back on and stir gently to finish cooking egg and break into ribbons.