Copycat Chinese Imperial Palace Egg Drop Soup Recipe | CDKitchen.com (2024)

FAQs

Why is Chinese egg drop soup so thick? ›

Beating the eggs with cornstarch before adding to the broth thickens them so they will be evenly distributed throughout the broth.

So What Is Egg Drop Soup? In case this recipe is new to you, egg drop soup is a staple at Chinese restaurants across the United States. It's typically made with lightly-seasoned chicken or veggie broth, and filled with delicious egg “ribbons”, which are created by whisking raw eggs into the simmering broth.

Egg drop soup is healthy. However, it may provide a high sodium load from the soy sauce used to flavor the broth.

Restaurants almost always add more starch to make the soup a lot thicker. They also add a lot of MSG to give the soup more umami flavor.

Yes, you can use flour to thicken egg drop soup. You will want to use about half the amount of flour, so about 1.5 tablespoons. You still whisk it together with the water, soy sauce, etc. Your soup will have a cloudiness to it rather than that clear glossy look that cornstarch give.

Corn starch, also known as cornflour, is a fine white powder made from corn. It is a common ingredient in many Chinese dishes because of its unique ability to thicken sauces and soups without altering the flavor of the dish.

Egg drop soup, also known as egg flower soup, (Chinese: 蛋花湯; pinyin: Dànhuātāng) is a Chinese soup of wispy beaten eggs in chicken broth. Condiments such as black or white pepper, and finely chopped scallions and tofu, are commonly added to the soup.

Make sure the broth is on a low flame – if it is too hot the egg will turn the soup cloudy. Ensure the egg is being poured in a THIN, EVEN stream into the soup! This will also ensure the egg does not form into clumps and turn into scrambled eggs in the soup.

Straws. Tape together several plastic straws around an egg to create a pointy house for the egg. The straw will absorb the force of the fall, keeping the egg safe. The bendiness of the plastic straws can also act like a car's suspension and absorb some impact!

Steamed fish or seafood with ginger, scallions and soy sauce. Steamed fish and veggies are packed with fiber and protein. One of the healthiest places you can choose an entree on a Chinese restaurant menu from is the seafood section, according to Amy Yiu, RD, a registered dietitian with Health Stand Nutrition.

What is the healthiest Chinese takeout soup? ›

Best: Soups

Wonton, egg drop, or hot and sour? Take your pick. Each typically has fewer than 100 calories per cup. Plus, the broth helps fill you up, so you won't eat as much of the heavier dishes.

So without getting too technical, MSG is “Yum-Yum-powder” – sold in stores to be included in your favorite dishes to enhance the taste.

A substitute for MSG in egg drop soup is to use umami-rich ingredients like soy sauce, fish sauce, nutritional yeast, or chicken or mushroom bouillon for added depth of flavor without MSG.

The bright yellow color is achieved naturally in this recipe with turmeric. Restaurant-style egg drop soup often uses yellow food dye to achieve that color. You can get a brighter yellow color naturally by adding more turmeric, and using pasture-raised eggs (which have a brighter yellow yolk).

Egg Drop Soup is a warm, thickened broth, with rich flavors of chicken and beautiful egg ribbons throughout. Enjoy this savory, simple to make soup recipe that comes together in just 15 minutes.

To make a thick Chinese soup, all of the ingredients required tend to be added into a pan at once and cooked slowly, allowing the flavours to infuse each other. The soup is further thickened by adding in a thickener such as tapioca starch or cornstarch.

If the question is “how are Chinese soups thickened?”, the answer is corn starch.

The ingredient that makes it gelatinous is cornstarch (aka corn flour).