Egg Drop Soup

Now that it’s Fall and my 29^th year is more than *gasp* half over, I’ve suddenly become much more motivated to start checking off that 30x30 list!

Egg Drop Soup is one of my favorite sides to order when we (ever more rarely) go out for Chinese.  So I decided to try and make it myself!  There are many, many schools of thought on how to make the perfect egg drop soup and how to get perfect egg pieces.  And after a lot of research, I can say I am perfectly happy with this method.  The eggs were small and silky smooth and the broth incredibly flavorful! 

This soup absolutely hits the spot!  I made up a pot when I got my bottom braces on (so I was on a mostly liquid diet) and got a slight stomach bug at the same time.  Egg Drop Soup has all the healing powers of Chicken Noodle Soup, just with a little twist!

You’ll notice that my broth is more brown than the traditional yellow for two reasons.  One, I used a homemade chicken stock that included some mushroom stems, hence the dark coloring.  Two, I seasoned my soup with soy sauce, also brown in color. 

Recipe Notes:

*Whisking the cornstarch into the eggs is the key to silky-smooth eggs.

*Pouring a steady stream of egg through the tines of a fork is the key to small wispy eggs, instead of huge unappetizing globs of egg.

Egg Drop Soup

Adapted Slightly from The Kitchn

4 cups chicken stock

1/8 tsp ground ginger

8 whole peppercorns

2 whole cloves

1 ½ tbsp low sodium soy sauce

4 oz mushrooms, thinly sliced

3 green onions, sliced

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp cornstarch

Place the stock in a soup pot and bring to a boil.  Add the ginger, peppercorns, and cloves.  Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.  Use a slotted spoon to scoop out the peppercorns and cloves, discard.  Add soy sauce to taste.

Add in the mushroom and green onions and simmer for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the eggs and cornstarch in a small, lightweight bowl (I used a plastic cereal bowl).

Make sure the soup is just barely simmering.  With one hand, hold a fork over one edge of the egg filled bowl.  Pour the egg, slowly and steadily through the tines of the fork while gently stirring the broth with your other hand.  Keep stirring until the egg has all been added to the pot.  Let the soup stand for 1-2 minutes while the egg finishes cooking.

Serve immediately, topped with additional green onions and soy sauce to taste.

Serves 4 side dish or 2 main dish portions