Hot and Sour Soup

A hot favorite Chinese soup in almost every home. Never heard of anyone who doesnt like this soup on a cooolllldddd day...

The best part of any chinese soup is the variation you can have in it. any veggies..any broth...its just too convenient..:)

Heres the recipe...hot and sour soup..aai's style...

Level: Easy
Serves: 4 to 6 people
Source: My Aai (Suchitra Thakur)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup carrots, finely chopped
1/4 cup spring onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup french beans, finely chopped
1/2 cup cabbage, finely chopped
4 garlic pods, finely chopped
1.5 inch ginger, finely chopped
few sprigs of parsley, finely chopped
1 egg, beaten (optional)
2.5 cups stock (i used chicken)
2 cups water (or as desired)
3 tblsp cornflour
1/4 tsp ajinomoto (optional)
1 tsp sugar (optional)
3 tblsp vinegar
2.5 tblsp soy sauce
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Method:
Step 1 - Place the stock in a pot, add water till the desired soup quantity is achieved and bring this to a roaring boil.

Step 2 - Add all the chopped veggies, ginger, garlic and parsley and boil again till the veggies are half cooked. You dont want it all mashed up in the soup.

Step 3 - Add the sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ajinomoto, salt and pepper. Boil for 3 to 4 more mins.

Step 4 - Mix the cornflour in a few tblsps of water and form a thick paste. Add this to the soup.

Step 5 - While the soup is boiling, pour in the beaten egg, real slow and keep stirring the soup rigourously. This step needs to be real slow, as the egg cooks instantly when in contact with the soup. You dont want the soup to have lumps of eggs in it.

Serve this soup piping hot.

You can use any stock, be it chicken, vegetable, beef...I have actually tried this recipe with only water too. NBAA...

You can use as little or as many veggies as you like...
You can add shreds of boiled chicken to this soup too, to make it Chicken hot and sour soup.

If you want a vegetarian hot and sour soup, minus the eggs and replace the chicken stock with vegetable stock.

Hope you enjoy making this super simple soup..and do let me know how it turns out..:)

Rack your brains:
Ajinomoto (monosodium glutamate/MSG/sodium glutamate), is a sodium salt of the naturally occurring non-essential amino acid glutamic acid.
It is used as a food additive and is commonly marketed as a flavour enhancer.

MSG as a food ingredients has been the subject of health studies.
It is said to be safe for most people when "eaten at customary levels".