Easy Hot and Sour Soup*
Preparing Chinese food is all about two things: prepping the meat and vegetables and mastering the use of sauces, oils, and vinegar.
I initially posted pics of my first attempt at hot and sour soup on my Instagram and cross-posted it to Facebook and I was surprised to receive a lot of requests to post the recipe. I hadn’t planned on doing this recipe, but it appears that a lot of people like Hot and Sour Soup.
Remember, prepping your mise en place is really crucial for cooking in general, but for Chinese food (and most Asian recipes, really) it’s all about prepping the meats and veggies and having all your sauces and oils at hand because the cooking is usually done very quickly and on high heat, even with something like a soup.
OK, you need to buy some Chinese foodstuffs. While most major Western supermarkets now have robust Asian food aisles—dark and light soy sauces, chili oils, Hoisin and oyster sauces, etc.,—the Chinkiang or black vinegar and zha cai (fermented mustard plant) might mean you would need to take that extra shopping step.
Ingredients:
6 cups of chicken stock or broth (homemade or store-bought)
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1- to 3-tablespoons of chili oil (to taste)
½-teaspoon white pepper
1 tablespoon palm or regular sugar
4 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 pound of skinless chicken breasts (two breasts)
1 package of zha cai (pickled mustard plant)
2 tablespoons of light soy sauce
2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce
½ teaspoon of salt
2 to 3 tablespoons of Chinese black vinegar
1 cup of finely chopped Tree-ear mushrooms (fresh or dried, but rehydrated)
1 cup of shiitake mushrooms, finely chopped (fresh or dried, but rehydrated)
If you don’t have shitakes or Tree-ear, use the mushrooms of your choosing.
1 cup of chopped bamboo shoots (hard to get fresh in most Western markets, so, go with canned, but rinse it thoroughly to get rid of the metallic smell from the can)
1 cup of firm tofu chopped into half-inch cubes
2 beaten eggs
3- to 4-tablespoons of corn starch (and equal parts water)
Like all great Asian cooking, the magic comes in the prep work because you’re going to be cooking on a high heat and you want the meats to be cooked thoroughly, but remain tender and the veggies to remain firm.
I had two healthy-sized chicken breasts. I was able to slice them length-wise into three fillets, then finely sliced each fillet into strips.
In a wok or stockpot add your oil and your crushed garlic, bring to temperature but don’t brown or burn the garlic. Now, here is where I add my chili oil. I used my own homemade Szechuan chili oil and—because Bob doesn’t like things too spicy—I kept it to two tablespoons.
If you don’t make your own chili oil, then use one of your favorites from the Asia market. One of my favorites is the Chiu Chow style, popular in Guangdong province. It’s got the right amount of heat and texture.
Once you smell the sweet, beautiful fragrance of the garlic, that’s when you add your finely sliced chicken and the white pepper. Raise the heat and constantly stir as they cook. Again, you don’t want them to brown or create a fond at the bottom of the pot, but get the chicken mostly cooked through.
Now, add your chicken stock. As it comes to a simmer, then add your mushrooms, the bamboo shoots, and the chopped tofu. Keep this all going on a nice simmer. I taste it now to see if it’s spicy enough.
Remember, when you add the savory and sour seasonings, that will also dilute the heat of the chili. You can also add more broth or water, too.
Next, this is where you create the lovely sour flavor.
After you have added your dark and light soy sauces add your package of zha cai. This stuff by the nature of its fermentation offers the soup that familiar sour note. I love this stuff, and if you’re a fan of Korean pickled vegetables, I’m sure you will enjoy it, too.
Start with two teaspoons of Chinese black vinegar. Stir it well and let the soup simmer for a minute or two before tasting.
Now, I don’t add a lot of extra salt to this dish, because between the soy sauces, chicken broth, and the zha cai, this soup is already, how would I put it? Very “sodium forward”. (It’s not cardiologist-friendly.)
That said, this would be the time to taste and adjust the seasoning. Add one tablespoon of sugar, salt if you feel it’s necessary; I found a half-teaspoon of salt with the sugar helps mellow out the sourness of the black vinegar.
You’re in the home stretch now. As the soup simmers, gently stream in your beaten eggs as little strands, I use a fork to spoon out the eggs while constantly moving in a clockwise circle over the pot, it’s like egg-drop soup, basically.
Now, you’ve probably noticed the soup is packed with flavor and textures; the right amount of heat, subtle sweetness, and tangy sourness, but it’s very much a watery soup.
Chinese cuisine is all about the sweet and the sour, the spicy and the crispness of fresh vegetables.
It’s also about viscosity and that fine line between silken and goopy.
To get that velvety thickness you expect in Hot and Sour Soup you have to use either potato or corn starch to create a simple roux. I make mine with three tablespoons of corn starch to three tablespoons of water. This is a delicate process, and like seasoning, you have to do it to your taste.
Slowly spoon in your roux as you bring the soup back up to a boil. Do it slowly so that you can control the thickness. Once it has the consistency you like, bring down the temperature and let the soup simmer until you’re ready to serve. Enjoy!
*This recipe first appeared on the original Meat Is Murder (But Also Delicious) blog. But, don’t worry, new recipes are coming!
Great stuff as always ADC...putting this in the fav's for later. I found a good way to get bamboo is the jarred preserved stuff, lacks the metallic taste - https://www.instacart.com/products/18552821-oriental-mascot-bamboo-shoots-in-chili-oil-salted-stripped-13-oz