Ingredients
For the Pork & Marinade
- 8 oz pork loin, cut into thin slivers
- 1/4 teaspoon table salt
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- half a teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
- half a teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon neutral oil
For the Soup Base
- 8 cups Asian-style chicken broth
- 1 cup reserved shiitake soaking liquid
- 8-10 dried shiitake mushrooms
- 8-10 dried wood ear mushrooms
- 1/4 cup dried daylily buds
- 1 cup bamboo shoot slices
- 8 oz firm tofu, cut into thin strips
- 1 cup carrots, julienned
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 2 teaspoons table salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1.5 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
For the Finishing Touches
- 6 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 6 tablespoons cold water
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 4 tablespoons Chinkiang black vinegar
- 2 teaspoons ground white pepper
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
First, Prep the Ingredients
This soup has a lot of components, so prepping everything first is key.
In a small bowl, marinate the pork slivers with the salt, sugar, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, cornstarch, and neutral oil. Set aside.
In separate bowls, rehydrate the shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and daylily buds in hot water for at least 30 minutes. Once rehydrated, reserve about a cup of the shiitake soaking liquid. Slice the mushrooms into thin strips, discarding the tough stems. Cut the tough ends off the daylilies.
In a small bowl, whisk together the black vinegar, white pepper, and sesame oil. This gets added at the very end to preserve its flavor.
Next, Build and Simmer the Soup
In a large pot or Dutch oven, bring the 8 cups of chicken broth and the reserved shiitake soaking liquid to a simmer over medium-high heat. Season the broth with the salt, sugar, light soy sauce, and dark soy sauce. Add the grated ginger.
While the broth heats, bring a separate small pot of water to a simmer. Briefly blanch the marinated pork for ~1 minute until cooked through. This step keeps the main soup broth clear. Remove the pork and set it aside. In the same water, blanch the bamboo shoots for 1 minute to remove any canned flavor.
Add the cooked pork, blanched bamboo shoots, rehydrated mushrooms, daylilies, carrots, and tofu to the main soup pot. Bring everything back to a gentle simmer.
Finally, Thicken and Finish the Soup
Give your cornstarch slurry a good stir and slowly drizzle it into the simmering soup while stirring continuously. Let the soup bubble gently for a minute to cook out the raw starch flavor and thicken to a slightly viscous consistency.
Reduce the heat to low so the soup is no longer bubbling. Slowly drizzle in the beaten eggs while gently stirring the soup in one direction. This will create the classic silky egg ribbons.
Turn off the heat completely. Stir in the vinegar, white pepper, and sesame oil mixture. Taste and adjust with more vinegar or white pepper if needed. Serve immediately.
Chinese Takeout-Style Hot and Sour Soup
Ingredients
For the Pork & Marinade
- 8 oz pork loin cut into thin slivers
- 1/4 teaspoon table salt
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- half a teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
- half a teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon neutral oil
For the Soup Base
- 8 cups Asian-style chicken broth
- 1 cup reserved shiitake soaking liquid
- 8-10 dried shiitake mushrooms
- 8-10 dried wood ear mushrooms
- 1/4 cup dried daylily buds
- 1 cup bamboo shoot slices
- 8 oz firm tofu cut into thin strips
- 1 cup carrots julienned
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 2 teaspoons table salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1.5 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
For the Finishing Touches
- 6 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 6 tablespoons cold water
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 4 tablespoons Chinkiang black vinegar
- 2 teaspoons ground white pepper
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- Marinate pork slivers with salt, sugar, soy sauce, wine, cornstarch, and oil.
- Soak shiitake mushrooms, wood ears, and daylily buds in hot water for 30 minutes. Reserve 1 cup shiitake liquid.
- Slice mushrooms into strips, trim daylilies.
- Mix black vinegar, white pepper, and sesame oil in small bowl.
- Bring chicken broth and shiitake liquid to simmer. Season with salt, sugar, both soy sauces, and ginger.
- Blanch pork in separate pot 1 minute. Remove and set aside.
- Blanch bamboo shoots 1 minute in same water.
- Add pork, bamboo, mushrooms, daylilies, carrots, and tofu to main soup. Return to simmer.
- Slowly add cornstarch slurry while stirring. Simmer 1 minute until thickened.
- Reduce heat to low. Drizzle beaten eggs while stirring in one direction.
- Turn off heat. Stir in vinegar-pepper-oil mixture.
