Peppery Sour Soup with Pork, Tofu and Wood Ear

What you need

• 10 g dried wood ear mushrooms
• 4 dried shiitake mushrooms
• 150 g (5 oz) pork loin
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce, divided
• 3 tbsp cornstarch, divided
• 1.5 l (6 cups) chicken stock
• 100 g (1 cup) bamboo shoots, drained
• 200 g (7 oz) firm tofu
• 1 tsp dark soy sauce, for colour
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 5 tbsp Chinese black vinegar, or rice vinegar, plus more to taste
• 1 1/2 tsp ground white pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• salt, to taste

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Cover the wood ear and shiitake with hot water and leave to soften, 20-30 min.

2. 2

   Cut the pork into thin matchsticks. Toss with 1 tsp of the soy sauce and 1 tsp of the cornstarch.

3. 3

   Drain the mushrooms, trim off the hard stems and any gritty bits, and slice both kinds into thin strips.

4. 4

   Cut the bamboo shoots and tofu into thin strips about the size of the pork.

5. 5

   Bring the stock to a boil in a large pot. Add the mushrooms and bamboo shoots and simmer for 3 min.

6. 6

   Stir in the pork, separating the strands, and simmer until no pink remains, about 2 min.

7. 7

   Add the tofu, the rest of the soy sauce, the dark soy sauce and the sugar. Bring back to a simmer.

8. 8

   Stir the remaining cornstarch with 4 tbsp of cold water, pour it into the pot and stir until the soup turns glossy and slightly thick, about 1 min.

9. 9

   Lower the heat so the soup barely bubbles. Stir it in one direction and pour in the eggs in a slow thin stream so they set into soft ribbons.

10. 10

    Turn off the heat. Stir in the vinegar, white pepper and sesame oil, adding the vinegar at the end so its sharpness stays bright.

11. 11

    Taste and add salt, more vinegar or more white pepper until it is both sharply sour and hot.

12. 12

    Ladle into bowls and scatter the scallions on top.

Imported from dinnerthendessert.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.