ISO recipe/help with authentic hot and sour soup

[nicklord1]

Hello as winter is setting in a few months i really want to perfect this soup as its perfect for colds etc . Now i have a few different variants but i am not sure if i can openly quote recipes , of course any authentic recipes would be great for me to compare with what i have originally have.

Thanking you all in advance

[Andy M.]

Hot and Sour Soup

1/2 Lb Pork, julienned
1 tsp Sesame Oil
1 tsp Soy sauce
1 tsp Cornstarch
2 Tb Peanut Oil
4 Dried Chiles, chopped
1 Tb Ginger, minced
8 C Chicken Stock
1 tsp Sugar
1 C Bamboo Shoots, julienned
1/2 C Dried Wood Ear Mushrooms
2 Eggs lightly beaten
2 Tb Cornstarch
1/4 Lb Firm Tofu, diced
TT Salt and White Pepper
5-6 Tb Rice Vinegar
2 Tb Soy Sauce
1 tsp Sesame Oil
1/4 C Scallions, chopped
2 Tb Cilantro, Minced

Combine the pork with the sesame oil, soy, and cornstarch. Marinate for 30 minutes.

Soak the bamboo shoots in water for 30 minutes, then julienne.
Re-hydrate and julienne the wood ears.

In a hot 4-quart saucepan, add the oil and sear the pork, stirring quickly then remove the pork from the pan and set it aside.

Add the chiles and ginger, and stir.

Add the stock, sugar, bamboo shoots and wood ears and bring to a boil. Season. Simmer for 20 minutes.

While the soup is boiling, drizzle in the egg to form ribbons. A slower, thin drizzle will make thinner, more delicate ribbons.

Mix the cornstarch with cold water to form a paste and add the cornstarch to the soup stirring constantly to thicken.

Add the pork and tofu.

Add the vinegar, soy, sesame oil, scallions and cilantro and check for seasoning.

Serve immediately.

Note: If you want to make the soup ahead of time, skip the last step and refrigerate the soup. Reheat the soup just before serving and add the vinegar, soy, sesame oil, scallions and cilantro and check for seasoning.

[Dave Hutchins]

There are as many recipes for hot and sour soup as there are Chinamen, But a while back Amerioca's test kitchen had one on rocky Mountain PBS. and Cooks Illistrated had one that is very detailed but very good .

[BreezyCooking]

Here's a recipe I've been making since I received my first wok back in 1974 (& which is still going strong!). I adapted it to suit not only my tastes for "hot" & "sour", but also for my husband, who doesn't eat red meat. It's both delicious & authentic, even though I substitute chicken for the pork used in other recipes of this type.


PEKING SOUR AND PEPPERY SOUP
(adapted from Madame Chu’s Chinese Cooking School)

¼ -1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast (one breast piece)
½ cup dried Chinese mushrooms (or dried shitake mushrooms)
12 dried tiger-lily buds
1 tablespoon dried cloud ear mushrooms
1 cake fresh firm or extra-firm bean curd
1 egg
5 cups chicken broth
1 small can shredded bamboo shoots
½ teaspoon sugar
2 tablesoons light (Japanese) soy sauce
2-1/2 tablespoons white vinegar (or to taste)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (or to taste)
2-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch, dissolved in 2 tablespoons of cold water
1 tablespoon sesame oil or hot (aka chili) sesame oil

Cut the chicken into shreds.
Soak mushrooms, cloud ears, & tiger-lily buds in 1 cup of hot water for 20-30 minutes, changing hot water every 5-10 minutes or so. Drain & rinse well. Shred the mushrooms & cloud ears; tie each tiger lily bud into a knot (for easier eating).
Cut bean curd into cubes.
Beat the egg until thoroughly & completely mixed.

Heat broth in a large saucepan until boiling. Add chicken strips & mix a few times. Bring back to a low boil & add bean curd, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, cloud ears, & lily buds. Add sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, & black pepper. Boil for 2 minutes & then add –first stirring to recombine – cornstarch/water mixture. Stir & then pour in beaten egg. Turn off heat & stir again, then sprinkle sesame oil on top & taste for seasoning, adding in additional vinegar &/or pepper to taste if necessary. Serve.

[GB]

Originally Posted by Dave Hutchins

There are as many recipes for hot and sour soup as there are Chinamen, But a while back Amerioca's test kitchen had one on rocky Mountain PBS. and Cooks Illistrated had one that is very detailed but very good .

The recipe that ATK had though was anything, but authentic (by their own admission). They said that to make it authentic required to many hard to get ingredients so they came up with a version that used easy to find things so that it would be a much easier soup to make.

[elaine l]

I have tried a few recipes and decided I'll just buy it. Although homemade has a decent flavor it lacks that really good taste that I love.

[nicklord1]

What would you say are the key ingredients . I have managed to track down shittake dried mushrooms and black fungus . 2 items i have never used before.

[Andy M.]

It's difficult to single out key ingredients. Since it's hot and sour soup, let's say, the dried chiles and the rice vinegar.

[jennyema]

Key ingredients are pepper, vinegar, tree ear, lily buds, tofu, egg and pork.

I hardly ever see H and S soup with black mushrooms in it, these days.

[nicklord1]

Hi my recipe says shread and soak the wood ear and the dried mushrooms but it doesnt say for how long or how . Also it says bring to boil and pour beaten egg in then take off boil , how long will it take for the egg to cook as its the last thing to go in the soup according to my recipe . Thanks