Hot and Sour Soup

Hot and sour soup is a pungent and spicy Chinese restaurant dish that’s quick and easy to make at home. In fact, it tastes even better when it’s made in your own kitchen. The takeout stuff can be thick and gloppy, and is not always as vibrantly hot or sour as it could be. Our family-friendly recipe is mild for the kids, but feel free to adjust the seasonings (and viscosity) to your preference.

To me, the magic of hot and sour soup is in the delicate egg ribbons suspended in the soup, which you’ll also see in egg drop soup. They’re made by simply drizzling beaten eggs into the soup as it’s being swirled—a fun cooking technique to try with the kids. Once you make our hot and sour soup, you’ll never want to whip out the takeout menus again.

What is hot and sour soup?

Hot and sour soup is a classic dish you’ll find at Chinese takeout restaurants, food buffets, and celebratory banquet meals. The soup varies by region, but many traditional versions include dried shiitake and wood ear mushrooms, dried lily buds, pork blood and ground white pepper. The broth can be made from chicken, pork, beef or lamb.

You can still find the dried mushrooms and lily buds used in homemade versions or traditional Chinese restaurants, but our more accessible hot and sour soup recipe uses fresh shiitakes, bamboo shoots, tofu and cornstarch as a thickener.

Hot and Sour Soup Ingredients

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• Chicken broth: We use chicken broth in our hot and sour soup. To control the saltiness, use reduced-sodium chicken broth or homemade chicken broth if you have it.
• Seasoned rice vinegar: The “sour” in our hot and sour soup recipe comes from seasoned rice vinegar. Rice vinegar (aka rice wine vinegar) is a mild, slightly sweet vinegar made from fermented rice wine, and is less acidic than distilled white vinegar. Seasoned rice vinegar has added sugar and salt.
• Soy sauce: Soy sauce provides umami. We like to use reduced-sodium soy sauce to keep the salt content in check.
• Salt and white pepper: These two seasonings add more flavor. White pepper is the traditional ground peppercorn used for hot and sour soup. It has an earthier and sharper flavor than its black counterpart, but black pepper works in a pinch.
• Hot chili oil and red pepper flakes: Hot chili oil and red pepper flakes add the spicy kick to our hot and sour soup recipe. Chili oil and chili crisp are different, but you can use chili crisp if that’s what you have. Adjust the spice level according to your taste.
• Tofu: Extra-firm tofu is a drier, firmer form of tofu. Some Chinese chefs have strong feelings about the firmness of their tofu, so you have carte blanche to use any type of tofu, from silken to extra-firm, for this recipe. Handle delicate, softer tofu gently—you can cube it if it’s easier—and add it at the end, heating until it’s warmed through.
• Shiitake mushrooms: We use fresh shiitake mushrooms that are cleaned, have their stems removed and are sliced thinly. This common type of mushroom is common in Japanese, Chinese and Korean cooking.
• Bamboo shoots: Bamboo shoots are crunchy and a little sweet. You can find them in various forms in Asian markets: fresh, frozen, preserved, jarred, canned or in vacuum-sealed packages. You can find canned sliced bamboo shoots in the Asian section of the supermarket. Drain and rinse them well before using them.
• Cornstarch and water: A slurry made of equal parts cornstarch and water is the key to thickening the soup.
• Eggs: The beautiful, delicate white ribbons are made by drizzling beaten eggs into the soup while swirling it.
• Sesame oil: Sesame oil is our finishing oil. Look for toasted or roasted sesame oil for its rich, nutty flavor and aroma.
• Green onions: Thinly sliced green onions bring a pop of color and a fresh oniony flavor. Smaller, slender green onions are sweeter and more delicate than larger ones.

Directions

Step 1: Make the soup base

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In a large saucepan or stock pot, bring the chicken stock to a simmer.

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Stir the in rice vinegar, soy sauce, chili oil, salt, white pepper and red pepper flakes.

Step 2: Add and cook tofu and vegetables

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Add tofu, mushrooms and bamboo shoots; cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until the mushrooms are soft.

Step 3: Thicken the soup

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In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and water until dissolved. Stir the mixture into the broth until it has thickened, one to two minutes.

Editor’s Tip: Bring the soup to a simmer—but not a boil—to activate the cornstarch. If you like your soup thicker, you can make and add more slurry, but add it in batches and give it a minute or two to thicken before adding more.

Step 4: Make the egg ribbons

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Slowly swirl a wooden spoon around in the soup to create a whirlpool. Carefully pour the beaten egg into the pot to create thick strands of scrambled egg.

Editor’s Tip: The soup should not be at a boil when you add the egg, or it will become cloudy. Continuously swirl the soup as you pour the egg in a thin stream. Once the egg is all added, stop swirling to let the egg set and float to the surface. If you prefer thinner ribbons, swirl the soup faster as you add the egg. Stir the soup slowly for thicker ribbons.

Step 5: Finish the soup

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Gently stir in the sesame oil. Serve the soup in bowls and top it with green onion.

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Hot and Sour Soup Variations

• Make it vegetarian: Simply swap vegetable broth for the chicken broth.
• Make it meaty: If you want a meatier soup, add thin shreds of pork or chicken. Marinate the julienned meat with salt, sugar and cornstarch and let sit for 10 to 20 minutes. Then, add it to the broth. You can even add julienned ham—marinade not necessary.
• Use other mushrooms: Replace the shiitakes with cremini or white button mushrooms, or use a medley of mushrooms.

How to Store Hot and Sour Soup

Hot and sour soup is best when served fresh. Store any cooled leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge. It will still be tasty reheated, but the egg ribbons will become a bit rubbery, and the tofu texture will change. Freezing leftover hot and sour soup is not recommended because the cornstarch slurry loses its thickening qualities when frozen, and more slurry will need to be added when the soup is reheated. Also, the tofu’s texture will become spongy and dense.

How long does hot and sour soup last?

Hot and sour soup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.

Can you make hot and sour soup ahead of time?

If you plan to make your hot and sour soup beforehand, make the base with mushrooms and bamboo shoots, but wait until reheating to add the tofu, cornstarch and egg. You can freeze the base; thaw it overnight in the fridge before reheating it.

How do you reheat hot and sour soup?

Reheat refrigerated leftover hot and sour soup in a saucepan until it’s warmed through. To reheat frozen or made-ahead soup, simmer the base, add the tofu until it’s warmed through, then add the cornstarch slurry and egg as directed. Brighten the hot and sour soup with more vinegar and white pepper.

Hot and Sour Soup Tips

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What can you serve with hot and sour soup?

Hot and sour soup is a light but filling meal on its own. As part of a meal, it makes a great starter with our other Chinese food recipes, like chicken fried rice or chicken chow mein.

How can you make a more traditional hot and sour soup?

Raid your nearest Chinese market! Instead of fresh shiitake mushrooms, use more traditional dried shiitake mushrooms and/or wood ear mushrooms; soak them in hot water until they’re soft, discard the stiff stems and slice them. If using dried shiitake mushrooms, strain the soaking water and add it to the stock.

Rinse and soak dried lily buds twice, then trim off the hard tip and add them to the soup with the mushrooms. Use the more acidic black vinegar instead of the rice vinegar, but use it judiciously as it’s more potent.

Add thinly sliced spiced pressed tofu instead of the extra-firm tofu. This pressed tofu is not the water-packed tofu you press to remove excess water. It’s a small, firm, flat block of tofu (four or more blocks in a plastic bag or vacuum-sealed package) often braised in five-spice seasonings and soy sauce.