The broth is thick and filled with silky ribbons of egg. White vinegar gives a distinct sour taste and white pepper is for heat. Soft tofu, chewy shitake mushrooms, there are so many textures in a spoonful of it. This soup is quite wholesome with a good balance of protein and fiber.
Shitake mushrooms – Shitake mushrooms are a flavor bomb. Dried ones are much more flavourful. Just rehydrate and cut into thin slices. Tofu – Takes care of protein requirements. Use Extra firm tofu, otherwise they will break into the soup. Bamboo shoots– An unusual ingredient for sure. You could easily get canned bamboo shoots in Asian stores or large supermarkets. Cut into thin matchsticks. Ginger and garlic – minced Sauces – Dark and light soy sauce. Dark soy sauce to give the soup a rich dark color. Eggs – Beaten eggs when stirred into the broth, create strands of silky ribbons, and also thicken the soup. Cornflour – Cornflour slurry is used to thicken the broth.
Add-ins / Variations
Wood ear mushrooms are used in Hot and sour soup traditionally. You can use fresh or dried ones( rehydrate before using). Poached and shredded chicken breast to bulk up on protein. Cut carrot into match sticks and add for some crunch.
Start with rehydrating Dry Shitake Mushrooms. Add hot water to the dry mushrooms until they are completely covered. Cover and let it rest for 30 minutes until soft. Use a large bowl, as the mushroom will almost double up. Then drain and cut into thin slices. Cut Tofu into cubes and bamboo shoot into thin match sticks. To give some smokiness, saute 2 dry red chilies in hot oil until dark brown. Discard the chilies, then add all the ingredients except egg and cornflour slurry. When the mix comes to a low boil, thicken the soup with cornflour slurry. To the thickened soup, slowly pour beaten eggs and keep stirring forming egg ribbons. After adding all the eggs, simmer for a minute more for the eggs to cook fully.
