Hot And Sour Soup

Hot and Sour Soup belongs to the Chinese cuisine like Tom Yum to the Thai one. There are many ways to enjoy this hearty and tasty soup, but our recipe introduces you to a vegan version of this beloved Chinese vegetable soup.

The base is vegetable stock with chili bean sauce and a little starch for the right thickness, and then you pile on the goodness of black mushrooms, cloud ear mushrooms, organic tofu, bamboo, and more.

Serves: 4 / Ready in: 1 hour

Great for: vegan, heart healthy, low calorie

Ingredients:

1 cup dried black mushrooms, soaked, drained, and cut into small strips

1 cup dried cloud ear mushrooms, soaked, drained, and cut into small strips

1 small can thinly sliced bamboo shoots

1 small can water chestnuts, sliced

1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into thin stripes

1/2 pack organic soft tofu, drained and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 green onion, cut into thin stripes

1 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated

3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

4 cups vegetable stock

1 tablespoon chili oil

3 teaspoons white vinegar

1/2 teaspoon light organic soy sauce (or tamari as gluten-free choice)

1/2 teaspoon chili bean sauce

1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/4 teaspoon sesame oil

corn starch paste for thickening (make corn starch with 1 teaspoon water and 2 teaspoons starch)

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:

1. Heat one tablespoon of chili oil in a wok or medium sauce pan. Saute the ginger and garlic until they are fragrant. Add all the mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts. Saute for 2 minutes and then add the vegetable broth.

2. Season with vinegar, soy sauce, chili bean paste, and white pepper. Bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Reduce to low heat and thicken with the prepared corn starch paste. Try to avoid clumps.

3. Gently fold in the tofu, green onions, sesame oil, and fresh cilantro. Serve hot and steaming!