HOT AND SOUR SOUP

Feeds 6

On a cold night in New York City, I loved the decadence of ordering Chinese takeout to be delivered to my apartment. Most times, all I wanted was a big white take-out carton full of hot and sour soup. This Szechuan specialty is like a kick-ass chicken soup, filled with soy sauce, tofu, dark Chinkiang vinegar, and fresh ginger. The heat and sourness cleared out my nose and made me happy. Now, we make our own version of this soup at home. Almost all Chinkiang vinegars contain gluten, so we substitute apple cider vinegar and red wine vinegar for that sour element. And we use tamari instead of soy sauce. And good dried mushrooms from the Pacific Northwest make this soup ours now.

• 1 tablespoon gluten-free tamari
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons arrowroot flour (you could also use cornstarch)
• 1 teaspoon dry sherry
• 6 ounces pork loin, cut into 2-inch-long strips
• 2 ounces dried mushrooms (such as shiitake or porcini)
• 3½ cups chicken stock (if you’re using boxed stock, make sure it’s gluten-free)
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 ounces extra-firm tofu, cut into matchsticks
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil, plus more for drizzling
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1½ teaspoons ground white pepper
• ¼ cup thinly sliced scallions
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 teaspoons peeled and grated fresh ginger

Marinate the pork. In a small bowl, combine the tamari, 1 tablespoon of the arrowroot, and the sherry. Pour the mixture over the pork slices in a bowl and toss. Marinate for 30 minutes.

Soak the mushrooms. Soak the mushrooms in hot water for 15 minutes. Drain and dry the mushrooms. Slice them into small pieces.

Simmer the stock. Set a Dutch oven over medium heat. Pour in the stock and salt. Stir until the salt is dissolved. When the chicken stock is hot, combine the remaining 2 teaspoons of arrowroot with 2 teaspoons water. Mix them into a slurry, then slowly pour the slurry into the stock and stir it in. Simmer the stock for a few more moments.

Finish the soup. Add the pork, tofu, and mushrooms to the chicken stock and stir them together. Simmer for a few moments. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer. Slowly, pour in the beaten egg. Let the egg sit for 15 to 20 seconds, then stir the stock to incorporate the egg into the soup.

Serve the soup. As soon as you are ready to serve the soup, stir in the sesame oil, both vinegars, and white pepper. Ladle the soup into bowls. Drizzle sesame oil into each bowl, then top the soup with the scallions, cilantro, and ginger. Serve immediately. You might want to have more white pepper, vinegars, and sesame oil on the table for folks to adjust the hot and sour part to their own tastes.

Feel like playing?

Traditionally, hot and sour soup uses dried wood ear mushrooms and lily buds in place of the dried mushrooms here. If you have access to a good Asian market, by all means use those. You could easily make this a vegetarian soup by leaving out the pork and adding more tofu and replacing the chicken stock with vegetable stock.