Hot and Sour Soup

Posted on by tiffany

酸辣湯 Suānlà Tāng — Hot and Sour Soup | OneDotDot Chinese
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Chinese Recipe & Vocabulary
酸
辣
汤

Hot and Sour Soup 酸辣汤

suānlà tāng  ·  “sour-spicy soup”
⏱Prep20 min
🍲Cook~15 min
◐DifficultyEasy
▦Yields4 servings
📍StyleTaiwanese
Taiwanese hot and sour soup (suānlà tāng) with tofu, egg ribbons and scallions
Photo: Tiffany, OneDotDot Chinese
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缘起The Story

酸辣汤 (suānlà tāng) is a thick, warming soup full of shredded pork, tofu, wood ear mushrooms, and silky egg ribbons. Versions of it exist all over China, but in Taiwan it has a home of its own: almost every dumpling and noodle shop serves a bowl of it next to a plate of 水饺 or 锅贴.

Here’s the surprise for many learners: the “hot” in Taiwanese hot and sour soup doesn’t come from chili at all. It comes from a generous amount of white pepper, and the “sour” comes from Taiwanese black vinegar, 烏醋 (wūcù). Both go in at the very end, after the heat is off, so their aroma stays sharp.

Many Taiwanese versions also add cubes of pork blood, 猪血 (zhūxiě) — soft, mild, and a little like silken tofu. It’s optional, but if you want the taste of a Taiwanese street-side bowl, it’s worth trying.

Reading the name

酸 suān — sour. 辣 là — spicy-hot. 汤 tāng — soup. 酸辣 together is a whole flavor category in Chinese cooking — you’ll also see it in 酸辣土豆丝 (hot and sour shredded potatoes). One more useful word: 香醋. In traditional characters it’s 烏醋 (wūcù, “black vinegar”), the Taiwanese style; in simplified characters we use 香醋 (xiāngcù, “fragrant vinegar”), the black vinegar common in mainland China.

材料Ingredients

Units:
猪肉zhū ròu丝sī
Pork (cut into thin strips)
100 g
嫩nèn豆腐dòu fu
Silken / soft tofu
300 g
猪血zhū xiě
Pork blood cubes (optional, but very common in Taiwan)
150 g
胡萝卜hú luó bo
Carrot
½
黑hēi木耳mù ěr
Black wood ear mushroom
2 pieces
笋丝sǔn sī、金针菇jīn zhēn gū、香菇xiāng gū
Bamboo shoot strips, enoki, or shiitake (any one)
100 g
鸡蛋jī dàn
Eggs (beaten)
2
高汤gāo tāng
Stock or water
1000 ml
油yóu
Cooking oil
1 tbsp
酱油jiàng yóu
Soy sauce (1 tsp marinade + 2 tbsp soup)
2 tbsp + 1 tsp
盐yán
Salt
½ tsp
糖táng
Sugar
1 tsp
太白粉tài bái fěn
Potato starch (½ tsp marinade + 2 tbsp slurry)
2 tbsp + ½ tsp
水shuǐ
Water (for the slurry)
3 tbsp
香醋xiāng cù
Black vinegar (Taiwanese wūcù)
3 tbsp
白bái胡椒粉hú jiāo fěn
White pepper
1 tsp
香油xiāng yóu
Sesame oil
1 tsp
葱花cōng huā
Chopped scallions
a little
🌶️ Adjust to taste: add more white pepper for more heat, more vinegar for more sourness. Taste after adding and adjust a little at a time.
🌍 Shopping outside Asia: Taiwanese 烏醋 has a sweet, savory flavor a bit like Worcestershire sauce; Chinkiang black vinegar works too. Dried wood ear mushrooms just need 20 minutes of soaking in warm water. Pork blood is sold at many Asian grocery stores — or simply leave it out.
Cooking Vocabulary from This Recipe
切qiē丝sī
to cut into strips
翻炒fān chǎo
to stir-fry, toss
调味tiáo wèi
to season
勾芡gōu qiàn
to thicken with starch
蛋花dàn huā
egg ribbons, “egg flowers”
关火guān huǒ
to turn off the heat
→ See the full Food Words vocabulary hub

做法How To Make It

1
猪肉zhū ròu丝sī加入jiā rù酱油jiàng yóu和hé太白粉tài bái fěn抓zhuā匀yún，腌yān10shí分钟fēn zhōng。
Mix the pork strips with soy sauce and potato starch by hand, and marinate for 10 minutes.
⏲ marinate, 10 min
2
胡萝卜hú luó bo和hé木耳mù ěr切成qiē chéng细丝xì sī，豆腐dòu fu和hé猪血zhū xiě切成qiē chéng条tiáo，鸡蛋jī dàn打散dǎ sàn备用bèi yòng。
Cut the carrot and wood ear into thin strips. Cut the tofu and pork blood into strips. Beat the eggs and set aside.
3
热rè锅guō加jiā油yóu，依序yī xù放入fàng rù胡萝卜hú luó bo、肉丝ròu sī、木耳mù ěr和hé笋丝sǔn sī（或huò金针菇jīn zhēn gū、香菇xiāng gū）翻炒fān chǎo。
Heat the pot and add oil. Stir-fry the carrot, pork, wood ear, and bamboo shoots (or enoki / shiitake), adding them in that order.
4
倒入dào rù高汤gāo tāng煮zhǔ滚gǔn，再zài放入fàng rù豆腐dòu fu和hé猪血zhū xiě，煮zhǔ5wǔ分钟fēn zhōng。
Pour in the stock and bring it to a boil. Add the tofu and pork blood and simmer for 5 minutes.
🍲 simmer, 5 min
5
加入jiā rù酱油jiàng yóu、盐yán和hé糖táng调味tiáo wèi。
Season with soy sauce, salt, and sugar.
6
太白粉tài bái fěn加jiā水shuǐ调tiáo匀yún，慢慢màn màn倒入dào rù汤tāng里lǐ，一边yì biān倒dào一边yì biān搅拌jiǎo bàn，勾gōu成chéng薄báo芡qiàn。
Mix the potato starch with water. Pour it slowly into the soup while stirring, until the soup thickens slightly.
7
转zhuǎn小火xiǎo huǒ，把bǎ蛋液dàn yè绕rào圈quān倒dào进去jìn qù，等děng10shí秒miǎo再zài轻轻qīng qīng推开tuī kāi，就jiù会huì出现chū xiàn蛋花dàn huā。
Turn the heat to low and pour in the beaten egg in a circle. Wait 10 seconds, then gently push it — silky egg ribbons will form.
⏲ wait 10 sec
8
关火guān huǒ后hòu加入jiā rù香醋xiāng cù、白bái胡椒粉hú jiāo fěn和hé香油xiāng yóu，撒sǎ上shàng葱花cōng huā就jiù完成wán chéng了le。
Turn off the heat, then add the black vinegar, white pepper, and sesame oil. Sprinkle with scallions and serve.
🔥 heat off before adding vinegar
🥟 In Taiwan, hot and sour soup is almost always ordered together with dumplings — try it with our handmade 水饺.

变化Add-ins

Once you have the base, it’s easy to change what goes in. Some common add-ins:

鸭血yā xiě
duck blood (instead of pork blood)
鸡肉jī ròu丝sī
chicken strips (instead of pork)
虾仁xiā rén
shrimp
白菜bái cài
napa cabbage
豆皮dòu pí
tofu skin (vegetarian)
辣油là yóu
chili oil, for extra heat

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常见问题Common Questions

Vinegar’s aroma disappears quickly when it boils, and white pepper turns flat. Adding them at the end keeps the soup bright, sour, and peppery — this is the key to the Taiwanese style.

The starch slurry was probably poured in too fast or without stirring. Stir the slurry right before using it (the starch sinks), and pour it in a thin stream while stirring the soup.

Lower the heat first, pour the egg in a slow circle, and don’t stir right away. Wait about 10 seconds for it to set, then push it gently. Stirring too soon makes the egg cloudy.

Yes — skip the pork and pork blood, use vegetable stock, and add more mushrooms and tofu skin. Shiitake gives the soup a deep, savory flavor.

More recipes
Cooking Chinese Food →
Goes well with
Handmade Pork & Cabbage Dumplings →
“yì diǎn diǎn” — one little bit at a time.
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