Hot and Sour soup is a typical kind of soup that you can normally see in the menu of Chinese restaurant. Ingredients actually are inexpensive, especially when they don’t put much ingredients like the way I do. I prefer to make it instead of buying it, so I can put all the ingredients that I like, have the right level of spiciness and sourness that suits to my palate.

Ingredients

• 100g pork tenderloin ( sliced thinly)
• 1 tsp premium soy sauce + 1 tsp of potato starch ( for marinating the pork)
• 1 block soft tofu ( cut into small cubes)
• 70g wood ear fungus (washed and Julienned)
• 150g Bamboo Shoots (Julienned)
• 2 Liters Chicken Broth
• 8 dried Shiitake, (washed and just enough hot water to soak the shiitake, when tender, remove the stem, sliced thinly)
• 1 lightly beaten egg
• 1 1/2 tbs potato starch + 3 tbs water ( slurry)

Seasoning

• 1 tsp chili flakes
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tbs premium soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp dark soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 tbs vinegar ( 1 tbs of white vinegar, 1 tbs black vinegar, kindly note that this is my level of sourness, you may want to add more or lessen it to suit your taste)
• White Pepper (to taste)
• Salt (to taste)

Method

• Marinate the pork with 1 tsp of premium soy sauce and cornstarch, set aside
• Boil the bamboo shoots for 3-5 minutes, set aside, discard the water
• Prepare your pot, add in the chicken broth, turn on the heat to medium high, add the pork and stirring constantly, to ensure that it would not clump together.
• Add the shiitake, wood ear fungus, tofu and bamboo shoots
• Add all the seasoning except the vinegar and pepper
• Let it come to boil,
• Add the vinegar,salt and pepper. Give a gentle stir.
• Add the slurry while gently stirring the soup. Followed by the lightly beaten egg. Let is boil for another minute or two. Serve hot.