With just 216 calories, Hot and Sour Soup just happens to be one of the healthiest mushroom soup recipes in the world! A Chinese restaurant favourite, it’s hearty, savoury, sour – and as spicy as you want it to be.
Filled with mushrooms, tofu and silky egg ribbons, Hot and Sour soup is thickened with cornflour/cornstarch so the broth is beautifully glossy. Serve as a starter with Fried Rice and Kung Pao Chicken, or have it as a meal!
Hot and Sour Soup
Can you handle the heat??
Hot and Sour Soup is what I order when I go out for Chinese and am pretending/trying to be healthy.
Hot and Sour Soup is also what I order just because I love it.
OK, well along with Spring Rolls, Chinese Corn Soup, San Choy Bow (Lettuce Wraps), Egg Foo Young (Chinese Omelettes) and Sesame Toast. It’s an all-out war of indecision, trying to decide what starter to have! #FirstWorldProblems
I never thought to make it at home until I happened across this recipe from Woks of Life. It’s my go-to website for Chinese recipes, run by a Chinese American family who used to run a Chinese restaurant!
What is hot and sour soup??
Hot and Sour soup is a Chinese soup that’s savoury, spicy and tangy. The broth is thickened and it’s filled with mushrooms, tofu, bamboo shoots and silky egg ribbons. The flavour and textures in this soup are an addictive combination, making it a firm Chinese restaurant favourite!
What goes in Hot and Sour Soup
The soup broth
Chinese Hot and Sour soup broth is made with chicken stock which is flavoured with typical Asian ingredients such as soy sauce, sugar, pepper and ginger. The soup is thickened slightly using cornstarch/cornflour – I love how the glossy broth coats the ingredients when you scoop it up!
The spiciness comes from finely chopped dried chillies. Red pepper / chilli flakes are a perfect substitute. Feel free to adjust spiciness to your taste!
The sourness comes from plain white vinegar. Some recipes use Chinese black vinegar or rice vinegar, but I honestly think white vinegar gives the cleanest flavour.
And the stuff that goes IN Hot and Sour Soup
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Dried shiitake mushrooms
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wood ear mushrooms
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bamboo shoots
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firm tofu
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egg
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shredded chicken (or drop in slices of tenderised Velveted Chicken)
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shallots/scallions
Because there’s a few ingredients that aren’t mainstream here, I’m going to do a quick rundown on each of them. If you’re bored, skip to the recipe!
The Mushrooms
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Dried shiitake mushrooms – dried is best because it has the best flavour, so if you really want one as good as how your favourite Chinese restaurant makes it, you’ll need to source some. Sold at major supermarkets nowadays, and also Asian stores. Subs: Fresh shiitake is good, followed by any other Asian mushrooms, Swiss Brown/Cremini mushrooms and bringing up the rear is good ole’ white mushrooms
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Wood ear mushrooms – named as such because they are shaped like ears (does that freak you out? 🙀), they have a soft crunchy texture. Wood ear mushrooms don’t have much taste when raw, but they are a great flavour sponge as well as adding great texture to the soup. Use fresh or dried – I use fresh because it’s sold at a local grocery store (eg Harris Farms). All Asian stores should carry dried, and some will have fresh. Subs: More shiitake mushrooms.
And the other stuff in Hot and Sour Soup
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Bamboo shoots – sold in cans at large grocery stores (Woolies, Coles, Harris), they have a crisp juicy texture and have a subtle taste. Mainly for texture in this soup. Subs: Any vegetable with a similar texture that can be cut into strips, like carrot, green beans, stalk of broccoli or cauliflower, or Asian greens. Use leftovers for stir fries, it’s ideal!
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FIRM Tofu – Make sure it’s a firm tofu otherwise it will disintegrate when stirred. Squeeze the packet to be sure! If you can only get soft tofu, handle delicately and stir it in right at the end.
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Chicken – I like to have a bit of protein in my Hot and Sour Soup, plus it’s poached in the broth so it adds flavour. But this is optional – there’s plenty of stuff in this soup even without! Alternatives: Shrimp/prawns, pieces of fish.
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Eggs – to make the signature silky egg ribbons!
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Shallots – aka scallions, green onions
How to make it
While the list of ingredients seems lengthy, the making part is very straight forward. Also, this recipe has a nice flow to it so it should be done from start to finish, including prep time, in about 40 minutes:
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Start by soaking the shiitake mushrooms to rehydrate them
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Pour the chicken stock into the pot and as it’s coming to the simmer, measure out and add all the flavourings
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While the chicken is poaching, get all the other “stuff” for the soup prepared (chop mushrooms, bamboo shoots etc etc)
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Tip it all in the pot and finish by thickening the Hot and Sour Soup with cornstarch / cornflour and adding egg to make the egg ribbons
Calories in Hot and Sour Soup – just 216 calories!!!
A big bowl of spicy-tangy-savoury-hearty deliciousness, and it’s just 216 calories. There are very few Chinese takeout favourites that are this healthy!
The only other ones I can think of is Chinese Lettuce Wraps (San Choy Bow) and Egg Foo Young, but they aren’t as filling in their own right so when you add a good pile of Fried Rice, it isn’t quite as low cal. 😂
Add ins: I’ve been known to add leafy Asian greens and even baby spinach to up the veg quota. I’ve also been known to add rice, to fill it out. It’s really, really good! – Nagi x
PS Giving myself a big pat on the back for (finally) adding another recipe into my Low-Cal recipe collection!
Best of Chinese Takeout recipes
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Spring Rolls – better than egg rolls!
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The BEST Chinese Soup for a cold!
Hot and Sour Soup is the BEST Chinese Soup for a cold! The clear broth, vinegar and spiciness are ideal for clearing chest and nasal congestion, and it’s a relatively light soup (though full of flavour!) so it’s easy to digest.
So when you want something different to Chicken Noodle Soup or Chicken Rice Soup when you’re feeling under the weather, try Hot and Sour Soup!
Watch how to make it
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Hot and Sour Soup
Ingredients
- 220 g / 7oz chicken breast
- 12 dried shiitake mushrooms (or 150g/5oz fresh) (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup wood ear mushrooms , chopped 1.5cm/ 3/5" pieces (Note 1)
Hot and sour soup broth:
- 1 tsp dried chilli / red pepper flakes , adjust spice to taste (Note 2)
- 2 tsp dark soy sauce (Note 3)
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce (Note 3)
- 1 tsp ginger , finely grated
- 1/2 tsp white pepper (sub black)
- 6 cups (1.5L/1.5qt) chicken or veg stock/broth , low sodium
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 cup (65 ml) white vinegar (adjust to taste)
Soup:
- 125 g / 4oz firm tofu (~ 1 cup) , cut into 1.2cm / 0.5" cubes (Note 4)
- 1/4 cup bamboo shoots , thinly sliced (Note 5)
- 2 eggs , whisked
- 1/4 cup (40g) cornstarch/cornflour
- 1/4 cup (125 ml) water
- Salt to taste
- 1 shallot/scallion , finely sliced
Instructions
- Cover shiitake mushrooms with plenty of boiling water. Stand 20 - 30 minutes until soft, drain, then slice thinly. (Discard or reserve liquid for other use)
Poached chicken:
- Place chicken broth, ginger, soy sauces, chilli, sugar, pepper and sesame oil in a large pot over medium high heat.
- Once simmering, add chicken, cover and reduce heat so it's simmering.
- Cook 10 minutes, remove chicken and shred.
Finish Soup:
- Add vinegar, shiitake, wood ear mushrooms, bamboo shoots, tofu and shredded chicken into the soup.
- Stir, simmer for 10 minutes.
- Mix cornflour with water. While stirring soup at a medium pace, slowly pour the cornflour mixture in (ensures no lumps).
- When it starts simmering again, stir constantly and slowly pour egg in a thin stream - this will create the signature "egg ribbons".
- Taste - add salt if desired, more chilli if you want.
- Add shallots and serve!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Still pursuing a no dried-dog-food diet for Dozer, incorporating fresh meat and even vegetables (with advice from a professional!).
But if a single bit of kale doesn’t get blitzed up completely, he picks his way around it… #brat
On nights my husband isn’t home for dinner, I make things for myself that I know he won’t eat. He doesn’t like mushrooms. Hot and sour soup is my all-time favorite! This recipe is amazing! I have allergies to preservatives so I have to learn to make a lot of things myself. The only thing I changed was a used a bit of chinkiang vinegar to add to the sour taste. I could eat this every day! Fantastic recipe, Nagi!
Exactly what I was craving. This recipe tastes just like the restaurant hot and sour soup I love if not better! This recipe is going in my regular cookbook for sure.
Woo hoo Gabrielle! I am glad that you enjoyed that! N x
This was so delicious!!!! i didnt have any chicken so i cooked it without and just added hard boiled quail eggs and my daughter and i devoured the entire pot in one sitting.
That’s a great tip Michelle, if you are out of chicken! N x
Loved this soup! Used apple cider vinegar, but next time I’ll try it with white vinegar. Thank you for this recipe!
It’s my pleasure Barb! I’m glad you liked it! N x
Hi, Nagi!
I added leftover fried tofu, dried anchovies, fermented shrimp paste, water chestnuts instead of bamboo, some napa, mirin, white wine vinegar. Somewhere along the way (20 years), I started adding oriental mustard powder which adds a nice kick. I never make it the same way twice!
It’s such a fun and versatile soup to make!
Chieko 😉
A fantastic recipe which will replace the one I’ve been using. I can’t believe I’ve never heard of velveted chicken but it’s a game changer. We liked white vinegar too. Thanks for another great recipe.
Woo hoo!! I am happy you liked it Maria!! N x
Sooooo delicious !! I had to use more white vinegar than 1/4 cup. maybe used about 1/2 a cup, in order to get that sour taste, that the soup is known for.
I make a gallon of this every 2 weeks! I would suggest using black vinegar, some red or orange pepper slices. Medium tofu is ok if you add it at the end and do not over stir. Add some sichuan peppercorns and hot chili oil too
Great tips Marti!
My wife and I LOVE hot & sour soup, and we have eaten it in restaurants across the country hundreds of times. And I must say, this recipe turns out authentic tasting, delicious hot & sour soup that rivals any we have had in any Chinese restaurant. Every mouthful was met with disbelief that a homemade version could be so amazing. Only change that I made was to use ground pork instead of chicken, since that is the way I usually see it served in restaurants. Also, at the end, after tasting, I added a bit more vinegar to lessen the peppery heat and make it more sour. Try it. You will not be disappointed.
This is delicious. I add a bit more vinegar and chili flakes to fit my preference. Also sometimes water chestnuts or baby corn. I had the same
Problem as another commenter that my soup turned cloudy when adding the eggs instead of the beautiful egg ribbons. After some web sleuthing on how to remedy that, I added
About a teaspoon of the cornstarch slurry to the eggs, and instead of stirring the soup, I used a fork to slowly stream them in while it was at a low boil. Ribbons weren’t perfect but much better! Thanks for the great recipe.
Hi Nagi!
The recipe calls for ¼ cup of water, which is equivalent to 60ml, not 125ml. 🙂
Very interesting and easy recipe.. took me about 1 hour and a half to finish The Who think but it is delicious.. I had lot of fun preparing and the final result was amazing.. definitely try it .
Hi Nagi, I’ve been looking for a great hot and sour soup recipe for years—and here it is!!
I made your way the first time and it was sublime. The second time I put in Sichuan peppercorns and 2 extra chilies. It blows your head off and steam comes out your ears 🤗
I made this last night, and it came out wonderfully! I was shocked how it easy it was. I really appreciate the amount of detail you add to the recipe, specific ingredients/substitutions, etc. I’ll be making this again, thank you!
I made this for the first time, it was delicious! I would appreciate clarification on the recipe, however. Under “broth” is calls for 1/4 c. white vinegar. Under “Finish Soup” is says to add vinegar again. (how much?) and are you supposed to add 1/4 vinegar twice? And, should the vinegar be Rice Wine? Thank you.
Hi Mona – you add the vinegar once at Step 1 under “Finish Soup” along with the mushrooms. I’m not sure why you would think that you add it twice? N x
Fantastic!! 5 stars… doesn’t even need the chicken!!
Can you freeze this?