Hot and Sour Soup

Hot and Sour Soup
 
This is a good winter pantry soup, most of the ingredients are either canned or dried.
It is also a good dish to have when I don't really feel like doing a lot of cooking.  

The "hot" actually comes from the white pepper and you can adjust this to suit your taste. The "sour" comes from the vinegar and can also be adjusted.

6 cups clear Vegetable Broth
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon of sugar
4 large shitake mushrooms (dried or fresh)
6-8 fresh button mushrooms, sliced
6-8 pieces of dried wood ear (optional)
1 can of sliced bamboo shoots, sliced again into narrow slivers or tiny squares (squares fit into the spoon better)
1 can of sliced water chestnuts
4 oz firm or extra firm tofu, cubed
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
3 Tablespoons of white vinegar
1 T cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tablespoons of water
2 T sesame oil
1/2 cup finely sliced green onions
chopped cilantro (optional)
large chow mein noodles to garnish


If using dried Shitake, place the shitake and wood ear in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Rehydrate the dried shitake and wood ear for 15-20 minutes. 

If using fresh Shitake, slice them thinly. If they are large, cut the slices in half. 

Slice the bamboo shoots into slivers. Slice the tofu into bite-sized cubes.

Place the vegetable broth, soy sauce, sugar, bamboo shoots, shitake, wood ear and button mushrooms in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 3 minutes.

Add water chestnuts, tofu, and return to a boil. Stir in white pepper, white vinegar and the cornstarch mixed with water. When the soup returns to a bubbles add the sesame oil and garnish with green onions.  Serve hot with large chow mein noodles and cilantro. 

This is a vegetarian version. The soup is fairly flexible. If you like baby corn, add baby corn. Water chestnuts are also optional, and often I do not use them. If you don't mind eating eggs, add a beaten egg at the end. You can also make Hot and Sour Seafood soup with the addition of whole small shrimp and either bay scallops, or scallop pieces. Toss them in the last few minutes until just cooked through.