Make the restaurant-style Chinese egg drop soup with the minimum ingredients, within 15 minutes, and without any fuss. {Gluten-Free}
Soup is an important element on a Chinese family’s dinner table. Back in Beijing when I was living with my parents, my mom would serve soup every day along with steamed rice, stir fried seasonal vegetables and a meat dish. Egg drop soup was always her first choice.
Cooking egg drop soup only takes 15 minutes, but you get a hearty soup that tastes way better than the one in Chinese restaurants.
You don’t need to add tons of spices like star anise and cloves because it overpowers the delicate egg flavor. I was astounded to see some egg drop soup recipes call for 6 to 7 spices. It’s unimaginable. We’re cooking a quick side dish here, not Vietnamese pho.
You only need some fresh green onions and ginger. That’s it. They bring out the sweetness of the egg without the taste being overwhelming.
Cooking notes
Fresh aromatics is the key
The key to make the soup more flavorful is to bring the soup to a boil and let it cook with the ginger and green onion for at least 10 minutes to release the flavor. That’s it. You don’t even need to chop the ginger. Just add a whole slice and you can fish it out and discard it before you serve the soup.
Thicken the soup before adding eggs
When you’re ready to add the rest of the ingredients, turn down the heat to let the broth simmer gently. Whisk in cornstarch slurry to lightly thicken the broth. By thickening the broth first, the eggs won’t think to the bottom when you add them, and form better egg ribbons.
How to create the perfect egg ribbons
Slowly add the beaten eggs by using a fork to slow the flow. DO NOT STIR! Let the eggs sits for a few seconds, then use a pair of chopsticks to break them apart to your liking. Stirring the soup too fast will break apart the eggs into tiny pieces and cloud the soup.
Final touch
Drizzle with a few drops of sesame oil. You will get the most comforting soup with a silky texture and delicious eggs bits.
That’s it.
There is no fuss about making a hearty egg drop soup that tastes even better than the one in a Chinese restaurant.
How to alter egg drop soup
There are a few things you can do to make your daily soup taste a bit different.
- Add 1 to 2 chopped tomatoes at the beginning. (One of my mom’s favorites – it makes the soup refreshing and changes the taste.)
- You can add a handful vegetables, such as bok choy, spinach, mushrooms, or cucumber (sounds weird, but it works). But remember that less is more.
- Add corn and peas to make it a corn soup (and you can add ground chicken to make it richer).
- Add a few soaked dried shrimp at the beginning, to infuse more umami flavor to the soup. My mom uses this method with some chicken bouillon when we don’t have chicken stock at home. If you use chicken stock and dried shrimp, the soup will taste even better.
More comforting Chinese soup recipes
- Hot and Sour Soup
- Winter Melon Soup with Meatball
- Wonton Soup
- Chinese Oxtail Soup
- Napa Cabbage Soup with Meatballs
If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it @omnivorescookbook on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with.
Chinese Egg Drop Soup
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 3 green onions , chopped, white and green parts separated
- 1 slice ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt (or to taste)
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder , for the yellow color (Optional)
- 4 large eggs , beaten (Footnote 1)
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
Instructions
- Combine the chicken broth, the white part of the green onion and ginger in a small pot. Cook over high heat until brought to a boil. Turn to a low heat and let the soup reduce to a simmer.
- Combine cornstarch, white pepper, turmeric, sea salt and 2 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Whisk until cornstarch is completely dissolved. Swirl into the soup and mix well with a spatula.
- To add eggs, hold a fork (or two chopsticks slightly apart) across the top of a small bowl, drizzle the egg mixture slowly through the gaps into the soup. Let the eggs set for a few seconds, then stir gently to break up the egg to the desired sized pieces.
- Drizzle sesame oil and sprinkle with the green part of the green onion.
- Serve warm.
Notes
- If you want the egg ribbons look even better, try to use 2 whole eggs and 2 egg whites. Adding more egg white will make the egg ribbons more consistent. If you have leftover egg whites from baking, now it's a good chance to use them!
Video
Nutrition
Hi what could I use instead of the chicken broth as I would love to make this but am vegetarian?
You can refer to the broth in my vegan egg drop soup recipe: https://omnivorescookbook.com/vegan-egg-drop-soup/
I prefer to use mushroom powder instead of veggie broth because the taste is neutral umami. Most veggie broth is too sweet for this dish.
Made this for a quick dinner. Easy to make, I had all the ingredients on hand. Turned out yummy. Look forward to using the dried shrimp next time as hubby put Oyster Sauce in for a bit more flavour. Looking forward Magi to trying further recipes. Nagi from Recipetin Eats put me onto you.
Awesome
This is now my go to recipe. It’s so easy and with few ingredients. I absolutely love it. Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe!
I have literally made this every day since day one. It is delicious!
Amazing, very well made video
Growing up in Germany, Egg Drop soup was a stable in my Moms kitchen. I didn’t get her recipe and have been winging it. I could never get the egg ribbon right. Now I know where I went wrong. I did not thicken the soup. Thank you for the lesson.
Absolutely delicious. I stumbled upon your site and couldn’t be happier. I love how you are making Chinese cooking simple for Americans, to make restaurant quality dishes with the cookware we have and use on a daily basis. I want my Chinese food to taste as close as possible to take out, so I am excited to try many of your recipes. This was delicious and spot on. Your instructions and details on technique are so important, thank you.
Cooked this last night, added shredded chiclon and sweetcorn, went down a treat. My son had thirds haha. Amazing recipe ty x