Hot and Sour Soup - Food Wishes 

I work at a Chinese restaurant making this soup everyday, the egg will looks better if you add cornstarch first than the egg.

I like to add the cornstarch in before the eggs because the thicken soup helps to suspend the egg gently while cooking it. Silky and long egg ribbons will form and the soup will look beautiful.

Pro tip if you have a French press laying around. Use it to rehydrate your mushrooms! Keeps them submerged and makes for an easy pour of the mushroom stock!!

I think the reason the Chinese soup spoon makes soups taste better is because they are larger and you generally sip broth off them rather than jam the whole thing in your mouth. When you sip or slurp something, the way the flavours hit your pallet all at once gives you a much larger burst of flavour and aroma. Also metal spoons change the flavour of stuff, so the spoon being ceramic gives a more natural flavour.

this was my favorite thing to eat in a chinese restaurant when I was a kid. I even tried to make it at home with my mom, back when there was no internet - obviously we failed. Will definitely make it now!

Some of the absolute best stuff when you're sick

Update: I've made this exact recipe, and it's very good, so good in fact my Daughter inlaw requests it as a Christmas gift every year. Now it most certainly goes together very quickly, in other words it's a quick meal to make, however, I will warn you that if you are like me and cut things thin and take your time doing it not a rush speed cut, which I can do, but there is something relaxing cutting veggies thin to the point of it being an expression of both art and love, lol at any rate, the longest part of this soup is the prep time. I've spent close to 2 hours cutting things up, course I'm also making a larger batch then this 4 modest servings. But it is one of the best versions of this soup having tried many others, and I must say I do agree with one person who posted a comment that if you add the eggs last after the cornstarch, the eggs come out better. It shouldn't matter, but lol, it does. Why? Magic. And a great substitute for shiitake mushrooms, as I could find them in all the stores in my land, lol, I have used those dried mushrooms that are in a snack bag, they're actually a snake you can find in the chips aslie, and a 3rd option if desperate, baby porta Bella mushrooms work fine, but I'd recommend removing the stem and only use the caps. I experimented doing two versions using porta Bella mushrooms one with the stems and one without, and I liked the one without stems better, taste and less confusing lol is this tofu, nope, mushroom stem. Maybe it matter to you, just putting that out there. But yes make this soup if you love it, as you will love this one too. Great for rainy days, or when you're sick, or need a pick me up, oh and having everything cut and ready to go, the fragrance of all the veggies cut up and put in the open in your kitchen is both amazing and beautiful! Smells so good.

Chef “Fresh, Right Out of the Can” John! 🤣😂. This is why I love your channel!

A little secret for hot and sour soup, if you have a sore throat it will let you feel normal for 20 or 30 minutes. My wife makes me a big pot every time I get sick.

Pro tip: The mushroom soaking liquid is the best! Use it in the recipe instead of throwing it out.

The cornstarch slurry is added before the egg...the end product looks so much nicer

That spoon is like a default for soups here in Pakistan, never knew it was called a Chinese soup spoon. Thanks for yet another helpful and exciting recipe!

If anyone is like me, I can provide a couple additions/suggestions. 1 is to add hot chili oil to the soup. 2. before adding the eggs, add the cornstarch slurry, and let thicken. Next, bring the soup to a boil, then shut off the heat and stir the soup until it will stir itself. Stop stirring, and pour your eggs in medium speed. Not to fast not too slow. Once the egg is in, just cover the pot and let sit for up too 5 minutes. You will end up with larger ribbons of egg throughout your soup, which have an amazing texture and are delicious. Lastly I will leave a couple additional tips/suggestions. Add your sesame oil after the soup is done, as excessive heat breaks it down. Additionally, if you did find or do have Chinese black vinegar, rather then adding it to the pot, place it on your table along with the white pepper and let each individual add both to their own bowls to their tastes. Cooking the black vinegar will muddle its flavour. Add a splash to your bowl just before you dig in. Anyways great recipe and my favourite soup for at least 2 decades.

The first time my Chinese girlfriend (now happily married wife of 9 years) made me eat Hot and Sour soup, I thought it would be disgusting because it is made up of a bunch of individual ingredients that I don't really like. Somehow, though, I really liked it once it was all put together. It's a dish that shows how powerful cooking and combining flavors can be.

The next time I'm able to travel, I'm totally making this for my mom- this is one of her favorite soups of all time!

i wok'd in a chinese restaurant for 4 years. chef john absolutely right, USE WHITE PEPPER

I was mega sick and my cousin brought some of this over and it brought me back to life. Now I’m 100% memorizing this recipe.

Don't worry, it gets much worse....... I was in stitches John.

Always love your video! Please use corn starch water before you drop the eggs, and add the mushroom water to the soup. You will get even better results.

Made this last night. This recipe makes a lot lol. I followed the recipe and directions to the letter, and I was very pleased with the results. Much better than what they call hot and sour soup at the Chinese restaurants here in Tampa.

Yay this was my foodwish I asked him on one of his chats!

You are, after all, the Bill Murray of your cornstarch slurry...

I remember eating this a couple of years ago at a restaurant. Best soup I've ever had.

Nooooooo, he threw out the mushroom soaking liquid!! You can use that shiitake water in the soup along with chicken stock! It's like liquid umami flavor

This is possibly my favorite soup of all time, so finally having a trusted recipe is wonderful.

I love this soup so much and have been making it for years. Some tips I would share are: 1) thinly sliced strips of pork tenderloin are amazing in it, 2) you can use any stock/broth you like; beef gives it even deeper flavor, 3) adding crushed red pepper flakes gives it another layer of heat that adds a different flavor as well, 4) many recipes call for silken tofu but it can fall apart very easily. I use extra firm because I like the texture, but use whatever you like, and 5) if you really like the "sour" component, try using red wine vinegar and add it right before you take it off the heat. Vinegar mellows the longer it cooks, so the later you add it, the stronger it will be.

The soup will still technically work if you use black pepper or cayenne.. *Clear disapproval flashing across his dulcet tones.*

Hot and sour soup is my goto favorite for when I have a cold, but I don't think I'll wait for the sniffles to come my way to try this out.

OMG this is my favourite stuff in the whole wide world and now it's on food wishes I must be dreaming....

"...bamboo shoots, which I got fresh...right out of the can" Chef John, you continue to crack me up! ^_^ Edit: Wow. Over 300 likes! Thanks, guys! :D

Hi Chef John. I would recommend trying a different order of mixing in the eggs and corn starch water, which makes the soup look about a million times better. I watch a lot of famous Chinese chefs and personally cooked this style of soup let's say quite a lot! :) Cooking following your instructions, after boiling everything before adding the eggs, turn up the heat, mix in starch water to thicken the content first. Until soup reach ideal thickness, pour egg in very slowly mainly aiming at where the soup bubble up the most, so that the egg solidify quickest possible. Do not stir. It probably only takes 30 sec for most of the egg cook, then stir gently, scrape up the egg stuck at the bottom of sauce pan if there is any. Great video all the same. Very happy whenever seeing you explore Chinese/Asian cuisine. Good luck!

If you can please try this soup with Enoki mushrooms as well, it adds incredible texture to this soup!

This has been my food wish for a very long time. Thank you, Chef John! I can't wait to try this out. ☺️☺️☺️☺️

Coincidentally I planned to make this tonight! The only inconsistency I saw between your recipe and others I’ve seen is that most suggest adding the vinegar and white pepper, and then immediately turn off the hear. Apparently those ingredients are volatile and lose flavor quickly if they boil. Anyway, just thought I’d add that! Thanks for the recipe, I’d love to see more Chinese cooking!

I prefer to add a bit of shredded chicken instead of the tofu. After all, I am the Mothra of what I add to my broth, brah...

The paper towel trick is genius.

So we don´t add the mushroom rehydration liquid back to the soup? I thought this liquid was the mushroom equivalent of meat juices and should be reused.

never have i heard chef john say cayenne with such distain

Dear Chef John ! we love you so much ! You seem to be one of the sweetest person imaginable ! Thank you for your wonderful videos that bring us viewers so much joy

Whenever I've felt a cold coming on, this soup knocks it away. I love this soup. Thanks so much.

Man i saw this after watching some other food wishes vid and i looked at the date expecting like 6 7 years ago and lo and behold this was new

Discarding dried shitake rehydration liquid is a capital sin

Every Chinese restaurant that makes this, does it differently. It's one of my favorite soups! Nice job, Chef John!

You read my mind! I spent far too much time trying to find a good Hot and Sour soup recipe that checked all the boxes. You have made it to the top of the list, kind sir! On behalf of my housemates and myself, we thank you! 💕🍲🥣🤤

You are the Chicken Coop of your Hot and Sour Soup.

Instead of draining the water used for the reconstitution of those mushrooms I like to use it in the soup since it contains an extra bit of flavor

It looks exactly like what I get in restaurants (mostly all closed now) and the white pepper is a must, thank you.

Chef John, you're a peach - but the trick with the paper towel and rehydrating things made my month. I know, I suspect I need to get out more, but why did I never think of that - genius!

Nice

I’ll agree and repeat what others have already posted - black fungus is another staple ingredient. Also use the soaking liquid from the mushrooms to enhance the flavor.

As I eat this soup I literally taste every ingredient and every one of them is perfect. Thank you Chef John. God bless

Chef John - thank you so much! Such a comforting soul food in these trying times.

This is probs the most authentic Chinese recipe he's ever done on this channel

I find that putting a small amount of cornstarch in the eggs make the perfect ribbons for soup

I made this tonight, almost exactly as you said. It was delicious! I couldn’t find dried shiitake mushrooms, so I used fresh, and used about half the cornstarch because we like it a bit thinner and are trying to eat low calorie. Thanks, Chef John! Your recipes are always wins in our house!

It so good!!! I am amazed. Thank you Chef John🙏🌟❤️🥳

My variant on this recipe, black cloud ear mushrooms, chopped pickled sushi Ginger, a good Balsamic vinegar, and I like a firm Tofu for those times when being left on the heat longer than anticipated is unavoidable, the soft is preferred if all comes together at the right time, but tends to dis-integrate if left too long, and is still acceptable.Oh, P.S.- not everybody has my palate so I add a good squirt real Siracha to my bowl.

Last time I had a hot and sour soup was in Thailand. Hoping to head back when covid is over

My favorite soup! Thanks Chef!

One of my favorites. Thanks Chef John!

Chef John just throwing out that Cat Power reference like it's nothing

Oh I hadn't thought of making this is home, my husband is gonna be stoked.

I've been waiting for you to post a recipe for this! I can't wait to try it!

Just finished up making a trough of this soup. It's amazing! Thx again Chef John!

Ever since Babish said recently “no one wants scrambled egg soup, I’ve been meaning to look up a recipe for this. My throat is currently on fire and I have most of these ingredients!

My girlfriend hates is when i imitate your intro but she loves your dishes i make for her. Tonight i am making your hot and sour soup and tommorrow the Salisbury steak. Thx John, your channel is a great inspiration and makes my cooking better and better.

Sweet! This is one of my fav soups, too! Thank you I will be trying this recipe out in a week or so.

YES! THANK YOU SO MUCH CHEF JOHN! I have been waiting for this video for a very long time now! ^_^

The spoon is made of porcelain, that's why it tastes better. And I never thought of that. So I'm gonna go buy one before I make this soup. Thanks for the video, friend!

This soup gets such a bad rap from cookbook authors and blogs, everywhere, but to me it's undeserved. I love the stuff.

I am SO excited to try this! Thank you!

Thank you Chef John. I love this soup

There are only a few food items that I don't really like, and tofu is one of those. But that soup looks so good in the end that I just might believe that Chef John is my Messiah of giving it another try-a.

I do enjoy a hot snd sour soup. I’m quite a snob when it comes to sweet and sour.

Hey jefe! Just wanna say ty. I'm just rounding the hardest part (I hope) of managing my first kitchen. Your videos helped me want to cook professionally and have been a great learning/teaching tool. TY sooo much!

I saw this and actually started to shake involuntarily....I’m so excited! Thank you!!

Mom used to always tell us: STOP PLAYING WITH YOUR FOOD, right? Shhh, mom is not watching and we're adults now... OK, sorta, right? PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD, PEOPLE, ok? Thanks for yet another great vlog, Chef. ⚘✔⚘

Ive seen a few people add the mushroom water as well, would this be a good choice?

Fresh... right out of the can! lol!!!! Thank you for today's smile Chef John!

One of my favourite Asian dishes! 🙏 Thank you, Chef John, for deciphering the recipe for us! 💌💕

Technically you're supposed to put the vinegar in at the very last stage of cooking, just before serving. I am Chinese after all....

"Nothing should be borderline pudding" -Chef John

-20 here in Southern Alberta today, Chef! Perfect weather for this classic - thanks for sharing it!

Magnificent. Your eyes will water with gratitude.

I've noticed that hot and sour soup on the west coast is never served with fried wontons which is a shame.

“and as long as you slice it thin, pretty much anything goes in!”

I just made this. It’s PERFECT! I did use brown rice vinegar instead of seasoned rice wine vinegar. I did add 1 packet of Stevia, some black fungus mushroom and some lily buds as well. And dried shiitake mushrooms. It could not have been better. Thanks, Chef!

OMG!!!! I requested it and you made it so! Thank you Chef John! 🤗❤️

The Mandarin Chinese way to say hot and sour soup is 酸辣汤 suān là tāng (pronounced "swan la tong"). So you are the King Kong of your suān là tāng. :)

"Nothing should be borderline pudding." yup 👍

Made it and love it! Thanks.

Hot and sour from the take out is my medicine for a head Cold

Looks delicious, was just looking for a recipe for this that didn't require a translator to get ingredients. Next time, please include the recipe for the little fried crunchy things that have a 50/50 chance of being stale from the restaurant.

Thank you so much. This is my favorite.

so nice during winter time when its cold outside! gonna def try this recipe!!

couldn’t be bothered to cook for about a week now, but finally went to the kitchen after you posted this today. great recipe!

The Chinese soup spoons are a game changer. Makes cereal taste better too!

Chef John, you are the best! Just know you are the best.

I love your recipes, you make us feel good by the way you speak love it

Boiling the vinegar and white pepper diminishes their flavor. Best to add them in at the very end.