Chinese hot and sour soup is a Sichuan dish of pork and tofu simmered in a spiced broth, served with silky ribbons of egg swirled through, easy to make!
Chinese Hot and Sour Soup Recipe
Soup time, my friends! Today we're cooking up a steaming bowl of Hot and Sour Soup in the Chili Pepper Madness kitchen. Would you care for a bowl? I think you're going to love this recipe.
It's perfect for the spicy food lover, and easy to make it as "hot" and spicy, and sour, as you prefer. This is a soup we love when the weather turns colder. It's very easy to make and it is very comforting, especially with my additional spices.
What is Hot and Sour Soup?
Hot and Sour Soup is a regional Chinese soup made with mushrooms and other vegetables, and often meats, in a flavorful stock.
It is very much like egg drop soup, but with more ingredients added in.
There are many variations of this soup, depending on the region and the cook, though typical ingredients include chicken or vegetable stock with lots of mushrooms, tofu, and pork or chicken.
The "hot" element traditionally comes from the addition of white pepper, though I add other spicier elements to mine, and the "sour" element comes from rice vinegar. You can very easily adjust both the hot and sour elements to your taste preference.
This recipe is more of a Chinese-American style hot and sour soup, more like you would find in your local Chinese restaurant, though I try to incorporate more traditional elements.
It is thickened with cornstarch, which isn't always used in traditional Chinese versions, though I do see it in some of my cookbooks.
I think you'll love this version so much better than your favorite take out place. We certainly do.
Let's talk about how to make hot and sour soup, shall we?
Hot and Sour Soup Ingredients
- Dried Shiitake Mushrooms. You can use fresh, but dried shiitake mushrooms offer a deeper flavor. You can use other mushrooms, if desired. Wood ear mushrooms are popular.
- Dried Lily Buds. Can be found online or in a local Asian market. Omit if you can't find them.
- Chicken Stock. A good quality chicken broth is good, or use vegetable stock for a vegetarian version (omitting the pork, of course).
- Soy Sauce. Use dark soy sauce for a richer flavor.
- Rice Vinegar. This is the "sour" element of the dish. You can use other white vinegar.
- Hot Sesame Oil. Reflecting the "hot" of the recipe.
- Sichuan Peppercorns. Sichuan peppercorns accentuate the "hot" elements of this dish with their tongue-numbing quality.
- Bamboo Shoots.
- Crushed Chili Flakes. Optional, for extra "hot".
- Corn Starch. For thickening the soup.
- Ground Pork. You can use other cuts of pork, like thinly sliced pork shoulder.
- Tofu. I use firm tofu.
- Salt and Pepper. To taste. White pepper is more traditional, though you can use black pepper, if preferred.
- Eggs. Beaten, which will form the thin egg ribbons for serving. So good.
- For Serving. Hot sesame oil or hot chili oil, chopped scallions, red pepper flakes
How to Make Hot and Sour Soup - the Recipe Method
Rehydrate the Dried Ingredients. Add the dried shiitake mushrooms and dried lily flowers to a small bowl and cover with very hot water or boiling water. Steep for 1 hour, or until softened and rehydrated. You can skip this step if omitting the dried lily flowers and using fresh mushrooms.
Boil the Stock. Add the chicken stock, rice vinegar, soy sauce and hot sesame oil to a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat.
Add Ingredients and Simmer. Add the Sichuan peppercorns, mushrooms, lily buds, bamboo shoots, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper and stir. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
Thicken the Soup. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook, stirring, 5 minutes to thicken.
Ground Pork and Tofu. Add the ground pork, and tofu. Stir and cook 5 minutes to cook the pork through.
Form the Egg Ribbons. Slowly pour in the beaten eggs while very slowly stirring the soup in a circular motion. This will allow the eggs to form silky ribbons in the swirling soup. Remove from heat.
Serve. Serve the hot and sour soup into bowls and top with hot sesame oil or hot chili oil, scallions or green onions, and red pepper flakes.
Boom! Done! Your hot and sour soup is ready to serve! I'm so ready to dig into this. We love this soup, especially when I make it extra spicy just for us.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- Heat Factor. Despite the name, "hot" doesn't necessarily refer to spice factor with this soup, though I obviously prefer spicy. You can easily up the "hot" element of this soup by including more Sichuan peppercorns, more hot sesame oil or hot chili oil, and more hot pepper flakes. Consider incorporating hot chilies as well, which I often use for myself. Other options include chili crisp, sriracha, chili-garlic sauce, or your favorite hot sauce. Spice it up!
- The Mushrooms. You can serve your "hot and sour soup" as more of a mushroom soup if you prefer. Consider adding a mix, such as button mushrooms, wood ear fungus/mushrooms, and others. Use vegetable stock and skip the pork for a vegetarian version.
That's it, my friends. I hope you enjoy my spicy hot and sour soup recipe. Let me know if you make it. I'd love to hear how it turned out for you. Keep it spicy!
Storage and Leftovers
Store any leftover hot and sour soup in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can easily rewarm it gently in a hot pan to enjoy again.
You can freeze hot and sour soup in a vacuum sealed container for 3 months or longer.
Recommended Cookbooks
If you love Chinese recipes and cooking, I recommend these books for the American cook. They're loaded with Chinese recipes that are full of flavor. I refer to them quite often.
- The Food of Sichuan, by Fuchsia Dunlop (affiliate link, my friends!) - This book is fantastic with loads of authentic Sichuan recipes and knowledge. Highly recommended.
- Easy Chinese Cookbook: Restaurant Favorites Make Simple, by Chris Toy (affiliate link, my friends!)
Try Some of My Other Popular Chinese Recipes
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Hot and Sour Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried sliced shiitake mushrooms
- 1 cup dried lily buds
- 2 quarts chicken stock
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon hot sesame oil (or use hot chili oil)
- 1 teaspoon ground Sichuan peppercorns
- 8 ounces bamboo shoots canned is good
- 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper you can use black pepper, if preferred
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch or potato starch mixed with 3 tablespoon water to form a silky slurry
- 8 ounces ground pork
- 1 pound firm tofu cut into bite-sized cubes
- 4 large eggs beaten
- For Serving. Hot sesame oil or hot chili oil, chopped scallions, red pepper flakes
Instructions
How to Make Hot and Sour Soup
- Add the dried shiitake mushrooms and dried lily flowers to a bowl and cover with very hot water. Steep for 1 hour, or until softened and rehydrated.
- Add the chicken stock, rice vinegar, soy sauce and hot sesame oil to a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat.
- Add the Sichuan peppercorns, mushrooms, lily buds, bamboo shoots, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper and stir. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Stir in the corn starch slurry and cook, stirring, 5 minutes to thicken.
- Add the ground pork, and tofu. Stir and cook 5 minutes to cook the pork through.
- Slowly drizzle in the beaten eggs while very slowly swirling the soup, 2-3 minutes. This will allow the eggs to form silky ribbons in the swirling soup. Remove from heat. Adjust to taste with vinegar for extra sour.
- Serve the hot and sour soup into bowls and top with hot sesame oil or hot chili oil, scallions, and red pepper flakes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
NOTE: This recipe was updated on 2/24/23 to include new information, photos, and video. It was originally published on 3/14/22.
Dr ROK says
Have you ever added the dried mushroom soaking liquid to the soup? Seems like there would be a lot of flavor there?
Mike Hultquist says
Yes, absolutely! I do that with ramen all the time. Great flavor!
James W says
Made this recipe last night and it was fantastic. I did add an addition helping of rice vinegar to give it a little more sourness to it. Best of all, it was simple to make in very little time. Thanks for the great recipe.
Mike Hultquist says
Great to hear, James! Glad you enjoyed it. I like mine with extra "sour" as well. Thanks for sharing!
Dr ROK says
Thanks for the great recipe. I prefer more vinegar, but that’s all personal preference.
Mike Hultquist says
Absolutely!
Dave says
So good, thank you for yet another stellar recipe! I think a little more rice vinegar (even if added when serving) really gives it that sour zing, and we didn’t have lily buds so we sliced some thin cabbage and some extra mushrooms as a substitute. It was a huge hit! Definitely in regular rotation now . . .
Mike Hultquist says
Great! Glad you enjoyed it, Dave! Thanks for sharing this. =)
Len says
Excellent and simple to make if one i would have like to add shrimp ❤️
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks, Len! Shrimp is great here for sure.
Andre says
So tasty and original.
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks, Andre!
Sean says
I've made hot and sour soup for many years and though my ingredients list is similar to the recipe here, I disagree that the lily buds are more or less optional. They lend a nice, IMO essential, texture to the soup, with the only real drawback being that they need some preparation before use (as noted, they're easy to find online so availability isn't a problem--the same sources also typically have wood ear mushrooms ("black fungus" available, IMO also essential to this soup). To prepare the lily buds, soak as noted though I use room temperature water rather than very hot water, against the possibility that super hot water might extract some of the natural flavors in the plant matter. When the buds are soft, cut off the tough end of each bud, and bisect each bud lengthwise with a sharp knife. The last step is a pain and I don't blame anyone for skipping it, but again it makes a significant positive difference in the soup. I completely agree that the more mushrooms the better--I always use black fungus and shiitake and I add oyster mushrooms and maitake if available. I wouldn't use morels but any other edible mushroom is fair game, again IMO.
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks for sharing, Sean! I LOVE the lily buds, and have been enjoying them in other recipes as well.
Boo Scruff says
I was scared to make this. It looked too good, I went for it, thanks for the video, tremendous help, Could not buy lily buds, but followed your idea for enoki mushrooms. I shopped in Chinatown, what a wonderful revelation, the little old store owner was very helpful and offered many suggestions. He seemed so happy I was attempting to make this. Oh, this soup was hearty, nice bold taste, so M-M-M and Yummy on this could rainy night. i am so proud of myself. Thanks so much for sharing.
Mike Hultquist says
Awesome! Thanks for sharing! VERY happy you enjoyed it.
Rosemary I parker says
are you kidding me I wouldn't be able to find most of the stuff you have on this recipe and we don't have an Asian market near me
Mike Hultquist says
Rosemary, aside from the dried lily buds, what's hard for you to find locally? I found everything in my local grocery store, except the lily buds, which you can omit. You can order online. If you want to make more authentic Chinese cuisine, you'll need to find a resource. Cheers. Have a great day!
Mary says
I have everything to make this today except the lily buds. The Chinese market dudnt have any for some reason. Would it be ok without it? Or is there a substitute that might taste similar?
Mike Hultquist says
You can omit them, Mary. Or use more mushrooms, like enoki mushrooms. You can easily add in other vegetables to your liking. Enjoy!
Kell says
I can't wait to make this. I adore hot and sour soup. I don't know what it is with tofu and me but it's just amazing. I found lily buds at Amazon for 8.99.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Yes! I hope you love it as much as we do, Kell!
Lynn O’Brien says
Where can I find dried lily buds? Recipe looks awesome.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Lynn, you can find them at your local Asian market, or order them online. I found some from Amazon.
Phyllis Churchill says
Is it possible to use something Else other than Tofu? or would i Just omit it? I don't like Tofu at all.
Thanks
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Phyllis, yes, you can either skip it, or add in extra pork and/or mushrooms, or try it with shrimp or chicken.