AUTHENTIC HOT AND SOUR SOUP RECIPES

Steps:

• Clean the dried day lilies, soak them in warm water for about 20 minutes.
• Cut off the hard, tough tip of the stem and then cut the day lilies in half lengthwise.
• Clean and soak the wood ear mushrooms in warm water for about 20 minutes, then cut into small pieces. To clean, just wipe with a damp cloth -- don't soak or wash!
• Bring the chicken broth to a boil and then add the pork (or vegetarian alternative -- see below), skimming the surface of any fat.
• Cook the pork for 3-4 minutes, until the broth comes to a boil again.
• Add the tofu, mushroom pieces, bamboo shoots, and day lilies.
• Let the pot return to a boil, then reduce heat to maintain a low boil.
• Add the soy sauce, spices, vinegar, salt and sugar.
• Taste the soup, adjusting the vinegar (you may need to modify up or down by an ounce) for the "sour" and salt for balance.
• Mix the corn starch and water to create a paste for thickening.
• Add the corn starch mixture slowly, stirring constantly.
• Drizzle the beaten eggs in slowly while stirring, so that you get "strings" of egg.
• Turn off the heat.
• Presentation -- ladle the soup into bowls, then garnish with 1/2 tsp of scallion per bowl and a drizzle of sesame oil.
• Comments on ingredients & substitutions:.
• Dried lily pods and wood ears (also called "tree ears", "black fungus" or "Hu Bei") available in most oriental markets.
• Chicken stock -- use home made or a low sodium canned variety. For Vegetarians use a Vegetarian Chicken stock or a Vegetable Stock.
• Pork -- For kosher alternative, use shredded chicken or turkey; for vegetarian alternative, replace pork with a mix of fresh flavorful mushrooms, e.g., shiitake, oyster, or portobellos.
• Soy sauce -- Betty uses regular soy sauce -- if using a "lite soy" variety, you may have to adjust the amount of salt to taste.
• Vinegar -- the vinegar is the essence of the "sour" aspect of this soup, and distilled white vinegar gives you the strongest taste; rice vinegars, wine vinegars, apple cider vinegars, etc, will either be too dilute (not enough acidity) or add extraneous flavors.
• Garlic -- garlic powder is preferred in this recipe, but if you choose to use cloves, leave them whole, add them only to flavor the chicken broth and remove them before adding other ingredients.
• Sesame oil -- adds a shimmer and smoky flavor to the final product. Chinese sesame oil is typically from toasted seeds; Japanese is typically untoasted, so the flavor will be subtly different.

Steps:

• Soak the dried shitake mushrooms and black fungus for 4 hours until they are completely re-hydrated. Slice them thinly.
• Cut 3.5 ounces of pork into thin shreds. Marinade with 2 tsp of soy sauce and 2 tsp of cornstarch. Let that sit for about 15 minutes.
• Cut 5 ounces of silken or soft tofu into thin shreds.
• Beat 2 eggs.
• Cut some carrot into thin shreds.
• Mince 1/2 tbsp of ginger.
• In a small sauce bowl, combine 2 tbsp of cornstarch +2 tbsp of water together. Mix it until you don’t see any lumps then add 1.5 tbsp of soy sauce, 1 tsp of dark soy sauce, 1 tsp of sugar, 1 tsp of Salt or to taste. Mix until everything is well combined. These are the Seasoning that you need to add to the soup earlier.
• In another sauce bowl combine 1 tbsp of freshly ground white pepper and 3 tbsp of Chinese black vinegar. Mix it until the pepper is fully distributed. These 2 ingredients you need to add to the soup right before turning off the heat.
• It is very important to follow the order. That is why made 2 different bowls of seasoning so I don’t get confused.
• In a wok, add 1/2 tbsp of minced ginger, the re-hydrated mushroom and black fungus, the shredded carrot, and 3.5 cups of stock. Give it a stir.
• Cover it and bring it to a boil. Add the pork. Stir it around so the meat doesn’t stick together. Give it about 10 seconds or so. The meat should changed color. Then you add the tofu. Use a wooden spoon, gently stir it and try not to break the tofu.
• Cover it and wait for it to come back to a boil. Pour in the sauce. Whisk the soup while adding the sauce. Stir in the beaten egg.
• Cook this whole pot for another 30 seconds so all the ingredients can come together.
• Add the other bowl of seasoning - white pepper and vinegar. They are the types of ingredient that the flavor will fade way if cook long time. That is why we add it 10 seconds before you turn off the heat.
• Before you serve, add a bunch of scallion and cilantro for garnish. Top 1.5 tsp of sesame oil for the nutty taste. And you are done.