Cookbook:Hot and Sour Soup

| Soup

Hot and sour soup is a popular soup served at Chinese restaurants in the United States. This version tastes exactly like that served at various Chinese restaurants in California.

Ingredients

 * 6 cups chicken stock or broth (or 4 cups water and 4 chicken bouillon cubes)
 * 4 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
 * ⅓ cup cooked shredded chicken or pork
 * ¾ cup mushrooms, diced
 * ¾ tablespoon garlic chili sauce
 * ⅓ teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
 * ⅓ cup white vinegar
 * ½ cup canned bamboo shoots, julienned
 * 4 ½ oz block of tofu, cut into ¼-inch dice
 * 3 tablespoons cornstarch and 2 tablespoons cold water
 * 1 egg, beaten
 * 3 green onion stalks, diced (including tops)
 * ¾ teaspoon toasted sesame oil

Procedure

 * 1) Bring chicken broth to a simmer in a 2-quart saucepan.
 * 2) Add soy sauce, shredded meat, mushrooms and garlic chili sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes.
 * 3) Add black pepper, white vinegar, bamboo shoots, tofu. Simmer for 5 minutes.
 * 4) Combine 3 tablespoons of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water in a cup. Stir until mixture is smooth. Add cornstarch mixture to soup and stir well.
 * 5) Simmer for 5 minutes until soup is thickened.
 * 6) Beat egg in a cup until yolk and white are combined. Pour beaten egg slowly, in a fine stream into soup. Stir soup several times, then wait 30 seconds.
 * 7) Add green onions and sesame oil to soup. Stir well and remove from heat.
 * 8) Serve hot.

Notes, tips, and variations

 * Adjust vinegar, ground black pepper, garlic chili sauce and soy sauce to taste. American vinegar is much more acidic than its Chinese counterpart, so start with very little and add slowly.
 * Add or remove mushrooms, bamboo shoots, or tofu as needed. These three ingredients don't add much to the taste, mostly they add to the texture of the soup.