Hot and Sour Soup

                                                  From Alex

Intrduction :

Chinese name: 酸辣汤 (suān là tāng)
Style: Sichuan (Szechuan) Cuisine
Characteristics: Hot and Sour Soup is characterized by being sour, hot, salty and fresh.

Hot and Sour Soup is mainly made of pork shreds, sausage, egg, mushroom, and dried bean curd sheet. It is usually eaten after the meal, helping to sober one up, getting rid of the grease and aiding digestion. It is also a good choice when you lose your appetite.

Ingredients:
1/4 piece of dried bean curd sheet or 50 g beancurd (tofu)
3-4 fresh mushrooms
50 g lean pork
50 g chicken breast
50 g sausage
1 egg

Seasonings:
chopped green onion
pepper powder
cooking wine
sesame oil
vinegar
soy sauce
chicken essence (chicken stock/bouillon)
salt
wet cornstarch (the proportion of cornstarch and water is ususally 1:2)
Note: the amount of the seasonings listed above can be appropriately used according to one's personal taste.

Methods:

Step 1: Fill the wok with three bowls of water. Turn on the heat. Add the lean pork when the water is boiling and add in the cooking wine to get rid of the fishy smell. Boil it for 10-15 minutes until it is 80% cooked. Turn off the heat and remove it from the wok, through a colander and place on to a plate. Repeat to process the chicken breast.

Step 2: Wash and clean the mushroom, sausage and dried bean curd sheet, cut them into shreds, and place on to separate plates. Cut the boiled lean pork and chicken breast into shreds, and place on to separate plates, too. Crack the egg into a bowl or a small basin and beat it.

Step 3: Pour the water out of the wok, and Add in the dried bean curd sheet, mushroom, sausage, lean pork and chicken breast shreds, and add in 3/4 bowl of water until all of the ingredients are immersed. Turn on the heat.

Step 4: Prepare a soup bowl by putting in it the pepper powder, vinegar, and chopped green onion. When the liquid in the wok is boiling, change to low heat and stew it for 2-3 minutes. Turn to high heat again, add in the salt, soy sauce, wet cornstarch, chicken essence and egg soup. Once the egg soup resembles a yellowish flower floating about the water, turn off the heat. Spoon them out of the wok and pour into the prepared soup bowl. Add in the sesame oil, finally.

 

Finish!