1 pkg. Dried Black Mushrooms (aka Woodear or Black Fungus)
1 lb. Pork (Loin or Butterfly Chops)
Firm Tofu (Bean Curd)
4-5 cups Chicken Broth
1 can Shredded Bamboo Shoots
3 Eggs
1 bunch Green Onions
Soy Sauce
White Vinegar
White Pepper
Corn Starch
Chili Paste (or Sauce) and/or Chili Oil
Sesame Oil
Dump dried Woodear Mushrooms into ample warm water.
Soak for 30 minutes to an hour. They swell up considerably.
You might find dried black fungus strips in an Asain market.
This is very handy. Stock up on this if you can find it.
If Woodear Mushrooms makes you squeamish, substitute whatever.
Slice up the re-hydrated mushrooms.
Slice pork into 1/4" x 1/2" x 1" strips.
Add a few tablespoons of cornstarch and a few teaspoons
of soy sauce to pork strips.
Mix well, cover with a cloth and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
Start broth with chicken stock, approx. 3 Tblsp. White Vinegar
and 2 Tblsp. Soy Sauce. Bring to a boil.
You can use bullions (chicken....or beef).
You are creating a balance between the hot and sour flavors.
You can always add more vinegar later.
Cut up tofu into similar pieces as the pork.
Regular tofu tends to fall apart. Firm or Extra Firm works best.
Open your shredded bambo shoots.
It may be hard to find shredded bamboo shoots and you may
only find strips, which you can cut up further.
But this is a real pain. If you find the shredded variety
you may want to stock up on this item.
Add pork, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and tofu into broth and
bring back up to a boil. Then set to simmer for 15 minutes.
Add 3 Tblsp. corn starch and 1/2 tspn. white pepper with
a little bit of COLD water. Stir with fork until dissolved.
This will settle out some, so re-stir just before adding it to the soup.
Slightly beat eggs.
Chop up green onions.
Bring soup back up to a boil. Slowly stir in eggs with a fork
swishing over the
surface of the soup to keep the eggs from clumping.
Stir in corn starch mixture to thicken soup.
Add a tablespoon of Chili Paste or Chili Oil.
If you like it really hot, add both. If you don't want it very hot, omit this
step.
Add 3/4 teaspoon Sesame Oil.
Stir in the Green Onions.
There you are. Most tasty!!!
Taste the broth and add more vinegar or hot stuff
(white pepper or chili sauce, paste or oil)
depending on which is lacking.
This is subjective, but you should have a nice balance
between these two aspects of the soup.
I find it always tastes better the second day.