Hot and Sour Soup

It’s cold outside and I have been craving soup! My mother used to make a lovely Hot and Sour soup while I was growing up that I have been able to replicate while keeping it Whole 30 compliant. If you are following my journey on my Instagram stories, you may be aware that I am following the Whole 30 protocol in the New Year which means that any soy or grain based ingredient is out and so that means no soy sauce as well as corn flour which is often used to make the slurry to thicken Chinese soups.

Now I know there may be more authentic versions of hot and sour soups out there but if you are from the Sub Continent, you are probably familiar and love the Desi touch we have given to our neighbor’s cuisine.  I can guarantee you’ll love this recipe and I can’t wait for you to try it!  Although this particular recipe has Whole 30 specific ingredient swaps, I have given variations if you are not following the protocol. Also,  soy sauce and corn starch are available globally and so this recipe should definitely be on your to try list before the winter is over! 

How to make this Hot and Sour soup picky eater approved

Make the veggies smaller Instead of cutting them into match sticks / slices, I use a box grater to grate the cabbage and carrot to make them more palatable for young ones.

Make it milder If your kids don’t have tolerance for spices, simply leave out the green chili.

Shortcuts and variations

Cut the cooking time in half by using store bought chicken or vegetable stock,  or pre made bone broth. I usually have some meal prepped in my freezer.  I’ve also recently tried it out with store bought vegetable broth and it turned out perfect! 

Feel free to swap out the vegetables I use cabbage and carrots because that’s what my mother used but I’ve seen many variations with bell peppers, mushrooms and bokchoy.

I hope you give this recipe a try, if you do, please consider leaving a review. I love hearing feedback and it helps other readers too! 

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Yield: 4-6

Hot and Sour Soup

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This soup is perfect for any time of the year but especially when it is cold outside. My version of a childhood favorite.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken, cut up
• Filtered water
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 small Roma tomato, chopped
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 3 tablespoons coconut aminos / soy sauce
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2 teaspoons sugar (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1 green chili, chopped
• 1 medium carrot, grated or match sticks
• 1/4 cabbage, grated or sliced thin
• 5 tablespoon arrowroot powder / cornstarch + 1 tablespoon water to form slurry
• 1 egg, whipped

Garnish

• green onions/scallions, sliced

Instructions

1. In a dutch oven or pot add the chicken and fill it with enough filtered water so as to fully dredge the chicken pieces.
2. Add the chopped tomato and season with the salt and pepper.
3. Cover and cook on medium heat.
4. Once the chicken is cooked, about 30 minutes, take out the pieces and set aside for later.
5. You now have a quick chicken stock which should amount to about 5 cups.
6. If there is less, increase the amount so that it equals 5 cups by adding water and seasoning with additional salt and pepper to taste.
7. Add the rice vinegar, coconut aminos, tomato sauce, red chili powder, green chili and sugar.
8. Let it come to a boil on medium high heat.
9. Take 4-5 chicken pieces reserved at the beginning, pick the meat from the bones and chop up. The rest of the meat can be saved for later for sandwiches etc.
10. Add the carrot, cabbage and chicken.
11. Let cook covered on medium low heat for about 5-10 minutes until the cabbage and carrot soften up.
12. Make the arrowroot slurry by combining the arrowroot powder with 1-2 tablespoons of water.
13. Increase the heat to medium high.
14. Add the slurry to the soup but turn off heat as soon as it thickens up or the arrowroot will breakdown.
15. Gently add the whipped egg and stir to combine. The egg will cook up in the hot soup and form ribbons familiar in Chinese soups.
16. Garnish with scallions and enjoy!

Notes

• You can cut down cooking time on this soup by using pre made or store bought stock. You can add boiled chicken or even leave it out.

• Whole 30 Compliance
• I used arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch but you can easily swap it out if you are not following the Whole 30.

• Soy sauce can be used instead of coconut aminos if you are not following the Whole 30 and or are not avoiding gluten.

• Leave the sugar out if you are following the Whole 30.

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @eatdrinkpure on Instagram and hashtag it #eatdrinkpure so that I can see your creations!