You won't believe how easy this hot and sour soup recipe is to make. Using one pot, you poach an entire chicken and then use the stock as a base for a delicious broth. No waste, the chicken gets shredded and re-purposed in the soup for a nourishing meal. This soup reheats amazingly well and can be frozen for convenience.
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time1 hourhr20 minutesmins
Total Time1 hourhr40 minutesmins
Course: Soup
Cuisine: American, Chinese
Keyword: chicken, gluten free, soup
Servings: 12people
Calories: 89kcal
Author: Chef Sara Furcini
Ingredients
Chicken Stock Base
15 poundwhole chickengiblets and organs removed
1bunchgreen onioncleaned and broken in half with hands
4clovesgarlicsmashed
3-inchpiecefresh gingersliced lengthwise in half
1onionhalved
1 tspwhole white peppercorns
4quartsfiltered water
Hot and Sour Soup
2tbspcanola oil
1-inpiecefresh gingerpeeled and grated on a microplane
1tbspsambal oelek chile paste
8ozcanned sliced bamboo shootsdrained
8ozshiitake mushroomsde-stemmed, sliced
1/2cupsoy sauceKikkoman or San-J
1/2cuprice vinegar
1tspsalt
1tbspground white pepper
1pinchsugar
14ozfirm tofudrained, medium dice
1/4cupcornstarchmixed with 1/4 cup water
3largeeggsstirred
green onionsliced thinly for garnish
Instructions
Chicken Stock Base
Put the whole chicken in a large pot with tall sides over medium heat. Toss in all the soup base ingredients and cover the chicken with filtered water. Simmer gently for 1 hour uncovered, turning the chicken half way through.
Carefully remove chicken with tongs and place on a cutting board until you can safely handle it. Remove the skin and shred the white and dark meat for use in the chicken soup. Strain onions and ginger, and reserve chicken stock for soup.
Hot and Sour Soup
Heat the oil in a large pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add the ginger, chile paste, bamboo, and mushrooms; cook and stir for 2 minutes to develop the flavor.
Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, salt, white pepper, and sugar. Toss to combine and cook for 1 more minute until fragrant. Transfer to the chicken stock pot and bring to a boil. Then simmer for 10 minutes. Add tofu and shredded chicken.
Thicken the soup by adding a slurry of cornstarch mixed with water (scrape the sides to get all of the cornstarch in the water). Simmer until the soup thickens and turn off heat.
Stir broth to create a current and simultaneously pour the mixed eggs into the soup to get strands of cooked egg. Season to taste and garnish with green onion to serve.
Notes
A microplane is a sharp grater used to mince ginger (affiliate link).For a gluten free soup, be sure to use Tamari or soy sauce labeled "gluten free."If shiitakes are unavailable, you may substitute 8 oz of any mushroom or mushroom mix.In lieu of cornstarch, a slurry can also be made with rice or tapioca starch.To Freeze, carefully divide the soup into gallon size freezer bags. Cool in an ice bath and then freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost the day before you need to reheat the soup.