Philadelphia Cooking Classes (In-Home), Catering and Personal Chef Services featuring Yoon Lee.

I wanted to have some hot and sour soup the other night but didn't really want to

order just soup from a restaurant and didn't want to order a whole meal either---

so I figured I would try to make it at home and this is how it went.

I started with cutting the tofu into long strips and had them laying to the side

to be thrown into the soup towards the end.

I started with the sesame oil and grating the garlic, ginger and lemongrass into the pot.

Next, were the mushrooms cut julienne (strips).

I added chicken broth and let everything have a good ole time in the hot sauna.

After about 10-15 minutes when everything was nice and bubbly... I took 1 egg, carefully rinsed it

and took a chopstick, poked a hole into the side of the egg.

Then, I shook the sucker--- I mean egg so that the egg would come out little by little as I shook it.

You'll have to give it strong little shakes but it's worth the tip and trick in getting it-

to come out in little stream like pieces!

Once, you are done with the egg, you can add your already cut strips of tofu. Now would

be the time to add your scallion as well...towards the end because it doesn't really

need to cook too much. I would save a few little pieces of scallion so you can use it as a garnish!

See how the egg is in little itty, bitty pieces?

Here is Hot and Soup soup take-IN rather than take-out.

If you don't like too much scallion, you can use a smaller amount to garnish!

If you have little Chinese spoons.... now would be a perfect time to use them.

I hope you enjoy making and slurping your take-in hot and sour soup!
If you take a taste and your soup broth isn't as hot and sour... literally...
add more hot pepper paste or simply siracha sauce as another option to bring the "hot" out
and a splash or 2 more of vinegar for the soup aspect.

Ingredients:

1/2 a pack of tofu (the firmer the better for this soup)

a handful of shiitake mushrooms (about 1/4 cup)

an inch of grated ginger (about 2 TBSP)

2 garlic cloves grated

1 teaspoon of sesame oil

1 inch of grated lemon grass or 1.5 teaspoon of lemongrass paste

equal parts of soy sauce and rice vinegar (I filled 3 ladles full)

(I would start with 1/8 cup if you are keen on exact measurements)

1 TBSP of red pepper paste

1 egg shaken

2 TBSP of cornstarch mixture (for thickening)