I make this soup all the time and have yet to get sick of it. Its also one of those recipes that you can do so many variations on, so don't be scared by any ingredients. They all have substitutes!
This soup is inspired by a recipe I found in a book titled "365 Ways to Cook Chinese." By now, I have changed the recipe so much that I think of it as my own.
Start with about 4 cans (or 7 cups) chicken broth. You can use homemade broth, veggie broth, or I sometimes even substitute half with water and boullion if I'm low on broth. (I wouldn't recommend using all water and boullion, you'd lose a lot of richness if you do that).
Add cider vinegar, soy sauce, cayenne pepper and lemongrass*. Lemongrass is so great, just take the stalk, chop it up, bend it and bruise it all over to release the juices, and add it, husk and all, to the pot. (You'll strain this later). Let that boil, covered, about 10-15 minutes.
*If you don't have access to lemongrass (its sold in most Asian markets) you can use lemon extract, lemon juice at the end (it will get bitter if added too early) or skip this ingredient. Kiffir lime leaves are an excellent substitute, but not as widely available.
Meanwhile, chop napa cabbage into thin strips. Dice water chestnuts.
Strain the broth to remove all the lemongrass. Add cabbage and water chestnuts to broth and bring back to a boil, covered.
Cut up pork into big pieces, tiny pieces, whatever you prefer, and saute in sesame or vegetable oil. It doesn't really matter what cut of pork you use, just go with what you like. You can skip the meat if you want a vegetarian soup, or substitute a different meat if you don't eat pork. Shrimp works really well with this recipe. (If using shrimp, add to soup right at the end because you don't want to overcook. Just a couple minutes is all it takes to go from translucent to pink, that's when its done.)
I like to cook the pork almost completely, and add it to the soup right at the end. It will finish that last step of cooking in the broth, but won't get overcooked and dry.
But I'm getting ahead of myself! Before you add the cooked pork, put the rice sticks in the broth. Now, cooking the rice sticks is all about preference. Traditionally, you add rice sticks to rapidly boiling water or broth, and cook for just a minute. I like to boil the rice sticks much longer, about 5 minutes. This kind of plumps the noodles up so they seem thicker. Most cooks would say I am totally overcooking the noodles and doing it wrong, but I don't care. So you do you, and cook those rice sticks however long you like.
Once the noodles are done, turn off the heat, add the chopped cilantro and green onions and the cooked pork, and ta da! Dish up that soup, squeeze a slice of lime over each bowl, serve and enjoy!
p.s. I do realize that cilantro is a love-it-or-hate-it kind of herb, and I've used it in my last two recipes. If you, like some people dear to my heart, think it tastes like soap, just use fresh basil or mint instead. It will give the soup a slightly different flavor, but still very delicious! In the summer when my herb garden is in full swing I usually just add handfuls of whatever is growing. I even add hot peppers from my garden and cut down the cayenne a bit, and its wonderful. Get funky with this soup!
Hot & Sour Soup
7 cups (or more or less) chicken broth
2 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 stalk lemongrass
1/2 head napa cabbage, chopped
1/2 can water chestnuts. diced
3-4 green onions, chopped
handful fresh cilantro (or basil, or whatever!) chopped
1 package rice sticks (sold in most grocery stores with the Asian food)
4 oz. or so pork, cut up
lime slices (1 per serving)
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