Hot and Sour Soup
Regional variations of Hot and Sour Soup are found throughout China. All contain bean curd, Chinese black mushrooms and usually pork, but the remaining ingredients can vary. In American Chinese cuisine hot and sour soup is almost vegetarian. However, many restaurants prepare the soup using chicken broth or add thin pieces of pork.
Common key ingredients include bamboo shoots, sesame oil, wood ear, cloud ear fungus, day lily buds, vinegar, and chili oil. Other ingredients include button mushrooms and small slices of tofu skin. It is comparatively thicker than the Chinese cuisine versions. Coming from the Szechuan cuisine, it is typically made hot (spicy) by white pepper, and sour by vinegar. The spiciness comes from the white pepper. No peppers or chili oil required! Egg is swirled in near the end of cooking.
A word about the dried ingredients
The foundation of the broth consists of dried lily flowers and dried shiitake mushrooms (also called black mushrooms). They both have a very concentrated smoky, earthy, and woody aroma. Once you rehydrate them, the rehydrating water will turn a dark brown color as it becomes infused with the great flavor. Do not throw this water away. You should use it to make the soup base.
The other dry ingredient is wood ear mushrooms. It is a mildly flavored fungus that adds a crunchy texture to the dish.
Chinese families always have these ingredients on hand because they allow a cheaper and healthier way to create a flavorful broth. If you use these ingredients, your soup will turn out more like the Chinese restaurant version.
Tip from Kenji López-Alt from Serious Eats: "The egg flower, as it's referred to in Chinese, is really simple to do. The key is to swirl the soup in a lazy vortex while slowly drizzling in the eggs, which are scrambled with a bit of cornstarch (the starch impedes protein connections, preventing the eggs from getting rubbery). The best way to drizzle in the egg is to hold either two chopsticks or a fork across the top of a small bowl and drizzle the egg slowly through the tines. It's essential that the soup be hot, but not boiling as you do this. You want the egg to set into relatively large curds, that you can then break up to the desired size by stirring more or less vigorously after you drizzle it." He uses 1 tsp. cornstarch for every 2 eggs.
*Hot and Sour Soup
from http://chinesefood.about.com/
This is the classic Szechuan recipe for hot and sour soup, made with tofu, pork and dried mushrooms. Hot and sour soup is reputed to be good for colds. To increase the health benefits, feel free to add 2 or 3 teaspoons of finely chopped ginger. For a vegetarian version of Hot and Sour Soup, leave out the pork. Unlike other Szechuan dishes, this classic soup gets its heat from white pepper.
This is the recipe Brian and I use. It is closer to the take-out soups we have had.
Note: you can make tapioca starch by grinding tapioca that you buy to make tapioca pudding, or just use corn starch.
1 cake tofu (fresh, if possible)
2 ounces cooked pork tenderloin [or use pork loin]
Marinade:
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon tapioca starch (or cornstarch)
Other:
1/2 cup bamboo shoots
2 tablespoons black fungus (Wood Ear) or Cloud Ear fungus
(or 3 - 4 Chinese dried black mushrooms or fresh mushrooms)
1 small handful dried lily buds
6 cups water or chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons red rice vinegar, white rice vinegar, or red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 Tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup water
1 egg, beaten
1 green onion, finely chopped
White pepper to taste (no more than 1 tablespoon)
Hot chili oil, to taste, optional [or for serving]
Shred pork. Mix marinade ingredients and marinate pork for 20 minutes.
Cut tofu into small squares. Cut bamboo shoots into thin strips and then into fine slices. To reconstitute the fungus, soak in warm water for 20 minutes. Rinse, and cut into thin pieces. (If substituting Chinese dried mushrooms, soak to soften, then cut off the stems and cut into thin strips. If using fresh mushrooms, wipe clean with a damp cloth and slice.)
To reconstitute the dried lily buds, soak in hot water for 20 minutes or until softened. Cut off the hard ends.
Bring the water or chicken stock to a boil. When it is boiling, add the bamboo shoots, fungus or mushrooms, and the lily buds. Stir. Add the tofu. Bring back to a boil and add the marinated pork.
Stir in the salt, sugar, soy sauce and vinegar and sesame oil.
Test the broth and adjust the taste if desired. Add a bit more soy sauce, sugar or rice vinegar, to taste.
Mix the cornstarch and water. Slowly pour the cornstarch mixture into the soup, stirring while it is being added. Let the broth come back to a boil. As soon as it is boiling, remove the broth from the stove.
Slowly drop in the beaten egg, stirring in one direction at the same time. [You are not mixing the egg in until it completely disappears. The egg should form threads in the broth - see the Tip above. Let the soup sit until the egg is cooked.] Add the green onion and the white pepper to taste. Drizzle with chili oil if desired. Serve hot [with chili oil on the side for those who want it].
(Hot and Sour Soup can be prepared ahead of time and frozen. When making the soup, leave out the tofu and the egg. When ready to serve, thaw, add the tofu and bring to boiling. When the soup is boiling, add the egg.)
Serves 4
Hot and Sour Soup
from The Shun Lee Cookbook: Recipes from a Chinese Restaurant Dynasty by Michael Tong, 2007
This recipe is from Michael Tong, whose Shun Lee restaurants have delighted New Yorkers and the city's visitors for three decades. In his first cookbook (2007), Tong shares his most popular recipes from the Hunan, Sichuan, and Shanghai regions of China.
1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) tree ears
1/4 cup (1 ounce) dried lily buds
4 Chinese dried black mushrooms (1 1/2 ounces)
2 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into thin 1-inch-long strips
1/4 cup canned bamboo shoots (1 1/2 ounces), rinsed, drained, and cut into 1-inch-long julienne
1/2 cake firm bean curd, cut in half horizontally, and then crosswise into thin 1-inch-long strips
1 large egg
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 cups Chicken Stock or canned chicken broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons ground white pepper, or more to taste
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
1 scallion, green part only, trimmed and minced
1. Place the tree ears, lily buds, and dried mushrooms in three separate bowls. Add hot water to cover to each bowl, and let stand until the vegetables have softened, about 30 minutes. Drain, and cut each vegetable into thin 1-inch-long strips. Set aside.
2. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add the chicken, bamboo shoots, bean curd, tree ears, lilies, and mushrooms, and cook until the chicken turns opaque, about 30 seconds. Drain in a colander. Clean the saucepan.
3. Beat the egg in a small bowl until frothy. Heat the oil in an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Drizzle in the beaten egg to make a thin, lacy crepe, and cook until set, about 1 minute. Slide the crepe gently out of the skillet onto a cutting board, and slice it into 1/4-inch thick shreds about 2 inches long.
4. Bring the stock, soy sauce, and white pepper to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the drained chicken mixture and return to a boil.
5. Dissolve the cornstarch in 1/2 cup cold water in a small bowl. Add to the saucepan, and stir gently until the soup thickens, about 30 seconds. Taste the soup, and add more white pepper if you wish. The soup should be spicy, but season it gradually or you may go too far. Transfer the soup to a large serving bowl, and stir in the vinegar and sesame oil. Garnish with the egg strips and scallion, and serve immediately.
