Sometimes you just want a bowl of hot soup, darnit. And nothing quells a hankering for soup like a bowl of… soup.
Click here for the recipe for ‘Egg-drop Soup’
I have no idea what the weather has been like where you live, but lately I’ve been freezing my bum off and so I always want hot soup. (I live in California. Anything lower than 77 degrees F is too cold for me) And when I’m cold and hungry, I don’t like to spend more than 15 minutes cooking in the kitchen. So, I present to you a simple egg drop soup recipe that will satisfy your soup cravings. And it’ll make you happily melt like the snowman in the classic Campbell’s soup commercial during Christmastime. (now that’s an alliteration!)
This soup features soft ribbons of egg, verdant green peas, zippy green onions, and subtle saltiness from soy sauce. It’s oh-so simple, so please… ditch the Top Ramen. You can do better than that, my college friends.
Here’s what you need:
Chicken broth, water, eggs, frozen green peas, green onions, soy sauce, freshly ground black pepper, and corn starch! That’s it. If you don’t have corn starch and don’t feel like getting it, that’s really okay. But I’ll explain why you need it below…
Heat up 3 cups of chicken broth with 1 cup of water. If you’re using low-sodium chicken broth, you can ditch the water and use only chicken broth. I just add water because it gently dilutes the soup and makes it lighter, IMHO. Heat up the soup until it boils and then reduce the heat so the broth gently simmers.
In a bowl, add cornstarch andcold waterto make a slurry. A slurry is what you call this specific mixture. This will thicken our soup and make it perfect.
Dissolve all of the cornstarch until it looks like this. While whisking the hot broth, pour in the slurry.
Let the broth simmer for a few minutes and it should slightly thicken. The soup needs cornstarch because when you add the beaten eggs, the slightly thick broth will allow the eggs to form beautiful soft ribbons instead of less texturally delicious egg strands. In other words, I don’t want rubbery egg soup. Yikes.
So this is just a sidenote. This is why you don’t dissolve cornstarch in hot liquid. Never, ever add cornstarch directly into a pot of hot soup. It won’t dissolve.
Don’t believe me? Check it out. The cornstarch begins to clump up. And trust me, it won’t dissolve. Ever! Just don’t do it.
In a liquid measuring cup with a pour spout (any container with a pour spout, really), whisk together 3 eggs. Some people like only egg whites in their egg drop soup. I’ll use the whole egg.
Whisk the eggs until the yolks and whites are completely broken up.
While whisking the hot broth, add the eggs in a slow steady stream. The motion of whisking will form the egg ribbons immediately.
I’m whisking the soup. I swear. This picture makes it look like I’m doing nothing!
Ohh, how pretty. Nice egg ribbons. We’re not done. We need to add additional ingredients and flavor.
Frozen peas, please. Got thinly sliced asparagus? Or baby mushrooms? Any other favorite vegetable? Add them here. And let them heat through.
Add some low-sodium soy sauce. This will be your salty component.
Slice up some green onions/scallions/spring onions (all interchangeable terms).
Add ’em to the soup….
And finish with the last component: freshly ground black pepper. Taste the soup and adjust for seasoning, if necessary.
Voila! Egg-drop soup is the soup du jour.
It’s just so easy. How can you resist?
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Egg Drop Soup Recipe
Total time: 15 minutes
Prep: 2 minutes
Cook: 13 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Level: Easy
Ingredients:
3 cups chicken broth
Water
1 tablespoon corn starch
3 large eggs
1 cup frozen peas
2 green onions, green and white parts, sliced
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Optional: cooked mushrooms, shredded carrots, sliced asparagus, etc.
Directions:
In a pot over high heat, add chicken broth and 1 cup of water and allow to come to a boil. Then adjust heat to medium-high so broth simmers. In a small bowl, whisk together corn starch and 1/4 cup of cold water until completely dissolved. Whisk corn starch mixture into hot broth and allow broth to simmer for about 2 minutes. Broth should be slightly thicker than before.
In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together eggs until yolks and whites are completely broken up. While whisking broth, pour eggs in a slow steady stream. Eggs should form ribbons and cook immediately. Add in peas and allow to warm through for 1 minute. Add optional vegetables, if desired, and allow to cook in broth. Stir in soy sauce, green onions, and black pepper. Adjust for seasoning, if desired. Serve immediately.
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