Egg drop soup
Beaten egg poured into lightly thickened, simmering stock so it sets in thin ribbons.
China · Silky, Tender · Easy · Researched
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 10 min
- Serves
- 2–3
Medium saucepan · Small bowl and fork · Ladle or chopsticks
Ingredients
- 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
- ½ tsp sesame oil
- ¼ tsp ground white pepper
- ⅛ tsp ground turmeric, optional, for colour
- Salt, to taste
- 3 tbsp cornflour
- 4 tbsp cold water, for the cornflour
- 3 large eggs
- 1 spring onion, thinly sliced
Method
Season the stock
Bring the stock to a simmer in the saucepan. Stir in the sesame oil, white pepper, turmeric if using, and salt to taste.
Look for: The stock simmers steadily with small bubbles.
Thicken it lightly
Stir the cornflour into the cold water until smooth, then pour it into the soup while stirring. Simmer for 1 minute until slightly thickened. This helps the egg float in ribbons instead of sinking in clumps.
Look for: The soup turns glossy and coats a spoon thinly.
Beat the eggs
Beat the eggs in a small bowl until completely smooth.
Look for: White and yolk are fully blended, with no streaks.
Pour in a thin stream
Stir the simmering soup slowly in one direction with a ladle or chopsticks. Pour the egg in a thin stream, from about 20 cm above the pan, while you keep stirring. Stop stirring once all the egg is in.
Look for: Thin yellow ribbons form and float as soon as the egg hits the soup.
Finish and serve
Leave the soup for 30 seconds so the egg sets fully, then turn off the heat. Taste for salt, add the spring onion and serve.
Look for: The ribbons are set and opaque throughout.
Equipment & heat
Equipment & heat
Keep the soup at a gentle simmer when the egg goes in: a rolling boil breaks the ribbons into small bits. On induction, drop the power as soon as the stock simmers. On electric, the ring holds heat; turn it down a minute before you add the egg. On gas, adjust the flame until bubbles rise only gently.
Nonstick: No frying pan needed. Any medium saucepan works.
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting
Thick clumps instead of ribbons mean the egg went in too fast or the soup wasn't stirred. Cloudy soup with tiny specks means it was boiling too hard. If the soup is too thin, add a little more cornflour mixture before the egg, never after.
About this version
About this version
A Chinese restaurant-style egg drop soup, following The Woks of Life. Homemade versions are often thinner, with less or no cornflour; you can halve it. Tomato, tofu or sweetcorn can be simmered in the stock before thickening.
Unless stated otherwise, use large chicken eggs, approximately 60 g in the shell, refrigerated. Timings are starting points: use the visual checkpoints and any stated temperature check.
Sources
This guide was written from the references below. Egg Atlas has not kitchen-tested it.
Illustrations by Egg Atlas. They show the method; they are not photographs of a tested result.