Hot and Sour Soup

Hot and Sour Soup is a common dish you can find just about any Chinese restaurant. It’s an extremely flavorful soup made with a variety of mushrooms & tofu, and seasoned perfectly a bit of spice from the red pepper and tanginess from the vinegar, with layers of silky egg ribbons floating throughout the soup. It’s a budget friendly Chinese classic that is so delicious!

Hot and Sour soup is super easy to make (done in 20 minutes!) and just as classic as chicken noodle soup in my opinion! If you’re a fan of Hot and Sour soup, you’ll never need to order takeout again after trying this recipe!

Watch the Hot and Sour Soup Recipe Video Below!

Ingredients for Hot and Sour Soup

This Hot and Sour Soup recipe is comfort in a bowl! Here is what you’ll need for the recipe:

• 8 cups chicken stock
• 3 tbsp distilled white vinegar (you can substitute rice vinegar or rice wine vinegar)
• 1 tsp white pepper (you can substitute black pepper)
• kosher salt (to taste)
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 3 tbsp light soy sauce low sodium
• 2 tsp dark soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp msg
• 1 tsp sesame oil

Vegetables

• 12 oz assorted mushrooms I used sliced wood ear, shiitake, and king oyster mushrooms
• 2 green onions chopped
• 3 dried red chili peppers or 1 tsp of red pepper flakes
• 6 oz firm tofu cut into 1″ pieces
• 4 oz bamboo shoots sliced
• 1/2 tbsp neutral oil
• 3 eggs

Cornstarch Slurry

• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup water

Hot and Sour Soup: Recipe Instructions

1. Prep your ingredients

This soup does not take long to make, and most of the work is prepping the ingredients. Slice the tofu, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots into strips. Next, beat 3 eggs along with a tablespoon of water in a bowl. In a separate bowl, create a cornstarch slurry by mixing together 1/4 cup of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of water.

For some spice, I’m using 3 dried red chilis, but you can omit them or adjust the spice level to your preference.

2. Fry the chilis

In a heavy bottomed pot, heat 1/2 tbsp of neutral oil over medium heat and add the chilis. Infuse the chilis in the oil for about a minute until they release their flavor into the oil, then remove the chilis from the pot.

3. Add the chicken broth and season the soup

Next, add 8 cups of a high quality chicken broth or stock (I always use Kettle & Fire – get 20% off your order when you use code CJPINS!). Turn the heat up to high and season with white pepper, salt to taste, sugar, msg, light & dark soy sauce, and sesame oil. The broth with turn a dark brown color like the photo below.

4. Add the mushrooms, tofu, and bamboo shoots

To the broth, add in your sliced mushrooms, tofu, and bamboo shoots. Mix those in and cover to bring the soup to a boil.

5. Add the cornstarch slurry

Once the soup comes to a boil, give your cornstarch slurry a final mix to pick up any cornstarch that has sunk to the bottom of your mixture, then pour in the slurry. Mix until the broth has thickened to your preference.

6. Form the egg ribbons

Now that the soup has thickened, turn the heat to low. Slowly pour in the beaten egg in a thin stream while simultaneously mixing the soup and egg with a ladle or spoon in a circular motion. If done correctly, you will begin to see the egg form silky egg ribbons throughout the soup that gives Hot and Sour soup its signature look!

7. Garnish and serve!

To finish the soup, add the white vinegar along with freshly chopped scallions. Give the soup a final mix and adjust for any seasoning if needed. Serve it up and enjoy!

If you liked this Hot and Sour soup recipe, check out some of the most popular Chinese Take-Out recipes on the blog!

• Chicken Lo Mein
• Shrimp Fried Rice
• Beef and Broccoli
• Sesame Chicken
• String Bean Chicken
• Egg Drop Soup