Hot & Sour Soup

This Cantonese-style soup is a warming and restorative dish, traditionally served in winter. Typical ingredients include chicken, green onions, mushrooms, carrots and celery. In this version, a savory broth is brightened with vinegar and layered with vegetables and rice, creating a harmony of heat and acidity. Cornstarch gives the soup a light, silky texture—add it gradually so you can achieve just the right consistency.

Hot and sour soup in white bowl

Ingredients

Superior Stock

  • 3⅓ lb (1½ kg) chicken pieces
  • 1 lb (500 g) veal trotters
  • Salted water for blanching
  • 5 oz (150 g) dry-cured ham, rinsed
  • 10½ C (2½ l) water, cold
  • ¼ C (60 g) ginger, sliced
  • 3 C (160 g) green onions
  • 3 lg carrots
  • 2 stalks celery
  • ½ C (24 g) fresh parsley stems
  • 2 dried black mushrooms
  • 1 oz (30 g) shiitake mushrooms
  • 2½ Tbsp (36 ml) rice wine
  • ½ tsp (2 g) white peppercorns
  • 4 oz (120 g) scallops
  • Salt to taste

Soup

  • 2½ oz (75 g) dried wood ear mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 7½ C (1¾ l) superior stock
  • Soy sauce, Shaoxing rice wine and Chinkiang vinegar to taste
  • ⅓ C (90 g) ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 2½ oz (75 g) enoki mushrooms, trimmed and separated
  • ½ C (70 g) cornstarch
  • ⅓ C (90 ml) water
  • Freshly ground white pepper to taste
  • 3 large egg whites, beaten

Plating and Garnish

  • 3½ oz (100 g) silken tofu, diced
  • 4 oz (200 g) scallops (U10-size), thinly sliced
  • 3 green onions, thinly sliced diagonally
  • 2 red chilies, seeded and thinly sliced

Directions

Superior Stock

Blanch chicken and veal in salted water (chicken 1-2 minutes, veal 2-3 minutes), rinse in cold water, cover with 10½ C (2½ l) cold water, bring slowly to a gentle simmer. Skim, add ginger, green onions, carrots, celery, parsley, black and shiitake mushrooms and rice wine. Simmer 2 hours. Add peppercorns and scallops, simmer 45 minutes. Add salt, cover, let stand 15-30 minutes. Strain; chill.

Soup

Hydrate wood ear mushrooms overnight. Strain liquid into saucepan, boil to reduce by half, add to superior stock, boil, reduce heat, add soy sauce, rice wine and vinegar, simmer 30 minutes. Add wood ear mushrooms and ginger, simmer 5 minutes. Add enoki mushrooms, simmer 3 minutes. Strain solids from soup, purée; return to soup. Combine cornstarch and water, stir into soup to thicken. Simmer until thick and shiny; add pepper and egg whites.

Plating and Garnish

Place tofu and scallops in bottom of bowls, ladle hot soup over these. Garnish with green onions and chilies.

  • Prep time: 1 hour.
  • Cook time: 3 hours.
  • Makes 10 servings.