“Hot & Sour Soup” from Shun Lee’s legendary master chef

Shun Lee's Hot & Sour Soup

For Christmas, our good friend Dylan gave Robert an autographed copy of “The Shun Lee Cookbook” and I’m very glad he did because I’ve been using it almost exclusively since then. Brimming with delectable Chinese recipes from his restaurant, Michael Tong’s irresistible book is a veritable treasure trove of easy to make dishes from the various regions of China, tested and adapted for home kitchens. The book goes beyond the well-known Chinese favorites to include spicy regional specialties (my favorites!) from Hunan and Sichuan, as well as Shun Lee’s original dishes that are now popular in every Chinese restaurant across North America.

Here at 2goumaniacs we probably have the most well-stocked home pantry when it comes to Asian ingredients, and yet when I decided to make the Hot & Sour soup, I was missing the dried lily, which I substituted with a small bag of Enoki mushrooms that I happened to have in the fridge. I also increased the proportions a bit as I was making the soup for 6-7 people. Below is my adaptation of “Hot & Sour Soup” from Shun Lee, the legendary Chinese restaurant dynasty! Hmm, hmm good!

Ingredients

●        ½ cup tree ears mushrooms, soaked, and cut into 1” long strips
●        ½ cup black cap canned mushrooms (optional)
●        ¼ cup dried lily buds, soaked and rinsed
●        ½ cup dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked, rinsed and cut into 1” long strips
●        1 small bag enoki mushrooms (optional)
●        3 chicken breasts, cut into 1” long julienne strips
●        ½ cake firm tofu cut into 1” strips
●        1 large egg
●        1 Tbsp vegetable oil
●        6 cups chicken stock
●        1/3 cup soy sauce
●        1/3 cup corn starch
●        1/3 cup distilled white vinegar
●        2 tsp ground white pepper
●        2 Tbsp dark sesame oil
●        1 large scallion, green parts only, trimmed diagonally

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add the chicken, bamboo shoots, lily buds (and/or enokis), tofu and mushrooms and cook until the chicken turns opaque, about 30 seconds.  Drain in a colander.

Beat the egg in a small bowl until frothy. Heat the vegetable oil in a small nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Pour in the beaten egg to make a thin crepe, flip it over for about 30 seconds, turn off heat, and transfer to a cutting board by sliding the crepe out of the skillet. Cut into 1/4“ x 2” strips.

Bring the stock, soy sauce and white pepper to a boil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the chicken mixture and return to a boil.

Dissolve the cornstarch in ¾ cup cold water in a small bowl. Slowly add to the stockpot, stirring continuously, until absorbed and the soup thickens, about 30 seconds. Taste the soup and add more white pepper, if necessary. Turn off the heat. Add the vinegar and sesame oil, stirring well. Ladle into individual serving bowls (or a large serving bowl), garnish with the eggs strips and scallion, and serve immediately.

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