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Vegetarian Hot and Sour Soup
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Easy Hot and Sour Soup

Step by Step Recipe to make Vegetarian Hot and Sour Soup at home - A Spicy, Tangy soup with umami flavors made easily at home with loads of vegetables and select Asian Condiments.
Course Appetizer, Soup
Cuisine Chinese, indo Chinese
Keyword Hot and Sour Soup Vegetarian, indo chinese recipes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 4 people
Author Vidya Narayan

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups Cabbage finely chopped, tightly packed
  • 150 gms Mushrooms Sliced
  • ½ cup Broccoli Florets
  • ½ cup Baby Corn sliced thin
  • ½ cup Carrot finely chopped
  • 1 cup Spring Onion or scallions 1/2 cup white portion and 1/2 cup green part, finely chopped
  • 1 ½ tbsp Ginger finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp Garlic finely chopped
  • 1 Green Chilli finely chopped, optional - read notes below
  • 1 ½ tsp Cornflour mixed with 1/4 cup water
  • 3 tbsp Sesame Oil
  • 4 ½ cups Water / Vegetable Stock

Condiments

  • 1 ½ tbsp Dark Soy Sauce Substitute with Tamari for GF
  • 2 tbsp Sriracha Sauce or use any hot sauce
  • ¼ tsp Black Pepper Powder
  • ½ tsp Sugar substitute with honey or maple syrup (vegan)

1 cup is 250 ml, 1 tbsp 15ml, 1 tsp 5ml

Instructions

  • Heat a wok, add sesame oil, garlic, scallions (white part) or spring onions, ginger and green chillies. Sauté them on high heat and BE careful not to let the garlic burn or turn dark brown in colour.
  • Add vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, corn, carrot, mushroom), season with some salt and black pepper powder. Toss well for 5 - 7 minutes.
  • Add the condiments (except sugar and black pepper powder), mix well and now add the 4 and 1/2 cups of vegetable stock or water. Allow it to simmer. This should take 8 to 10 minutes.
  • After 10 mins, check seasoning and add extra, if required. Mix 1 and 1/2 tsp of Cornflour or Cornstarch with 1/4 cup water and add the slurry to the simmering soup. Add the sugar and balance amount of black pepper powder. Turn down the heat to low and let the soup thicken. Mix well and once the soup turns glossy, switch off the flame.
  • Garnish the soup with finely chopped scallion greens or spring onion (green portion), mix once and serve piping hot.

Notes

  • Salt is added at two stages - (1) to season the vegetables (2) to adjust the seasoning after adding condiments. Soy sauce and broth / stock contain salt and hence you should season carefully. Always taste check the recipe at various stages of cooking.
  • Do not skip the sugar. Any recipe that calls for sour and spicy elements need sugar to balance the flavors. You will not taste the sugar in the soup.
  • If using Tomato Ketchup (used in most restaurants), use 1 tbsp. You may skip sugar or reduce the quantity. 
  • Use Dark Soy for best results. It provides that perfect dark caramel colour to the soup. You can use a combination of light and dark soy as well. For a Gluten-free recipe, use Tamari. 
  • Sesame Oil is the key to Asian Cooking but it can be substituted with Olive oil or any neutral flavor oil as well.
  • This soup serves 4 people. 
Leftovers and Storage
The soup tastes best when consumed fresh. At best, it can be refrigerated and enjoyed a day later. This soup contains cornflour / cornstarch and when frozen (and thawed) turns into a gelatinous texture, which many won't find appealing.
Here is one tip I recommend - Follow all the steps up to / until adding the cornstarch. Cool the soup completely and then freeze. When you want to consume the soup, thaw required portion of the soup (always freeze small portions to easily thaw) and then re-heat on stove top and add the cornstarch.