Hot-and-Sour Soup

Hot and Sour Soup is one of the healthiest mushroom soup recipes with 216 calories! This Chinese restaurant classic is meaty, sour, and spicy as you want.

Hot and Sour soup is glossy thanks to cornflour/cornstarch, mushrooms, tofu, and silky egg ribbons. As a beginning with Fried Rice and Kung Pao Chicken, or as a meal!

Chinese spoon scoops hot-and-sour soup from bowl.

Can you withstand heat?

When I get Chinese and attempt to be healthy, I order hot and sour soup.

I order hot and sour soup because I adore it.

Along with Spring Rolls, Chinese Corn Soup, San Choy Bow (Lettuce Wraps), Egg Foo Young (Chinese Omelettes), and Sesame Toast. Choosing a beginning is a struggle of indecision! #FirstWorldProblems

Only after seeing this Woks of Life recipe did I consider making it at home. A Chinese American family that owned a Chinese restaurant runs my favorite Chinese cooking website!

White saucepan with Tove-fresh hot-and-sour soup

Hot-and-sour soup?

Chinese hot and sour soup is spicy and tangy. The thickened broth contains mushrooms, tofu, bamboo shoots, and silky egg ribbons. Chinese restaurants love this soup because of its flavor and texture!

Ingredients for Hot and Sour Soup
Asian flavors including soy sauce, sugar, pepper, and ginger flavor chicken stock in Chinese Hot and Sour soup. Cornstarch/cornflour thickens the soup, and I adore how the glossy liquid covers the ingredients as you scoop it up!

Finely chopped dried chilies provide heat. Perfect substitute: red pepper/chili flakes. Adjust spiciness to taste!

• Dry shiitake mushrooms
• wood-ear mushrooms
• bamboo shoots
• firm tofu
• egg
• shredded chicken (or tenderised Velveted Chicken pieces)
• shallots/scallions
• Hot and sour soup stock: chicken or vegetable broth, soy sauce, sesame, vinegar, chilli, ginger, cornstarch, pepper, sugar.
• Sourness originates from white vinegar. Some recipes use Chinese black or rice vinegar, but I prefer white vinegar for its pure taste.

Because there are a few non-standard components, I’ll briefly describe them. Skip to the recipe if bored!

The mushrooms
Dried shiitake mushrooms provide the finest flavor, so if you want one like your favorite Chinese restaurant produces, you’ll need to get some. Nowadays sold in big supermarkets and Asian shops. Fresh shiitake, Asian mushrooms, Swiss Brown/Cremini mushrooms, and white mushrooms are suitable subs.

Named from its shape, which resembles ears (is that scary? 🙀), wood ear mushrooms are velvety and chewy. Although they don’t taste much when raw, wood ear mushrooms not only provide texture and flavor to soup, but they also act as a fantastic flavor sponge. Either use fresh or dried; I get mine at a nearby grocery shop, so I go with the fresh option (like Harris Farms). You can get dried in most Asian supermarkets, and you can even find fresh in a few. Add more shiitake mushrooms as a vegan option.

Bamboo shoots, offered in cans at Woolies, Coles, and Harris, are crisp, juicy, and mild. Mostly for soup texture. Alternatives: Carrot, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower stalks, or Asian greens with a similar texture and strippable texture. Using leftovers for stir fry is great!

Stirred tofu will dissolve if it’s not firm. Squeeze the package to confirm! Soft tofu should be handled carefully and stirred in last.

Chicken — Poached in the broth, chicken adds flavor and protein to Hot and Sour Soup. This is optional—this soup has enough of stuff without! Fish and shrimp are alternatives.

The distinctive silky egg ribbons need eggs!

Green onions (scallions)

How to make

The recipe is simple despite the long list of components. This dish flows well and can be completed in 40 minutes, including prep time:

Soak shiitake mushrooms to rehydrate.

Pour the chicken stock into the kettle and measure and add the seasonings while it simmers.

Prepare all the soup ingredients (mushrooms, bamboo shoots, etc.) while the chicken poaches.

Finish by thickening the Hot and Sour Soup with cornstarch/cornflour and adding egg to produce egg ribbons.

Only 216 calories in Hot and Sour Soup!
A huge bowl of spicy-tangy-savoury-hearty goodness for 216 calories. Few Chinese takeout favorites are this healthy!

The only other options are Chinese Lettuce Wraps (San Choy Bow) and Egg Foo Young, however adding Fried Rice makes them less filling and higher in calories. 😂

I’ve added lush Asian greens and baby spinach to boost my veggie intake. I sometimes add rice to fill it. Very excellent! Nagi x

PS Claiming victory for adding another Low-Cal dish to my collection!

Top Chinese Takeout Recipes:

• Spring Rolls – Better than Egg Rolls!
• Kung Pao Chicken
• The Beef and Broccoli
• Stir-fry chicken chop suey
• Chow Mein
• Cashew Chicken
• See all Chinese recipes
• Two bowls of hot and sour soup ready to eat.

Best Chinese soup for colds!
Best Chinese soup for colds is Hot and Sour! This light, flavorful soup is simple to digest and clears chest and nasal congestion with its clear broth, vinegar, and spiciness.

When you’re sick, try Hot and Sour Soup instead of Chicken Noodle or Chicken Rice!