I used to dread egg drop soup (蛋花汤); I had countless bad, sticky, gooey egg drop soup made popular by American Chinese restaurants here in the US. When I was a poor and starving graduate student in the Midwest, I ate too much crappy Chinese buffets or lunch specials with endless supply of MSG-loaded egg drop soup. I was not a big fan of it.
But it all changed recently when I was in Shanghai, when I dined at Jesse, a famous local gem that serves exquisite Shanghainese fare. Their egg drop soup was superior with light and refreshing broth (no starch added!) saturated with the natural sweetness of clams. My co-worker and I slurped the big serving of egg drop soup dry; it was satisfying…
I have been making egg drop soup with clams since I came back. I try to replicate the taste and perfect the recipe, and I think I am getting there.
Try my egg drop soup recipe and say goodbye to the runny, tasteless, plain, boring egg drop soup you get from your Chinese joints. Say hello to a refreshing, comforting, and home-made egg drop soup that you will need to beat the summer heat. If you don’t like clams, you can add tofu and it works fine, too.
Enjoy!
Ingredients:
3 eggs (beaten)
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
1 pound clams (rinsed and scrubbed)
4 oz. tomato (diced into small pieces)
1 stalk scallion (finely chopped)
Salt to taste
3 dashes white pepper powder
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine
Method:
Bring the chicken broth and water to boil. Add the diced tomato into the soup and bring it to a quick boil. Add a thin stream of the beaten egg into the boiling broth by circling around the soup pot in a clock-wise manner until the eggs are used up. Wait for 1 minute or so until the eggs are cooked then add the clams and seasonings. As soon as the clam shells are open, add the chopped scallions into the egg drop soup. Turn off the heat and serve immediately.
Cook’s Note:
When you pour the eggs into the boiling soup, don’t stir the soup with ladle or it will break up the eggs too much.
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{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh! I actually kind of like the sticky egg drop soup (or maybe it was just the last one I had in new york?). But I’ve no doubt this is definitely much more delicious and elegant! :)
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Manggy – you must have a great one. The ones I had were always nasty and sticky thick with loads of MSG. I like my soup watery and savory and not gooey. Hehe.
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ahhh, a simple meal that can be prepare~
as in the pic taken, its mouth watering!~
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Taufulou – thanks for your comment, yes, this egg drop soup is awesome!
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Very, very nice dish!
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Thanks Nate.
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Now this is my kind of egg drop soup! The clams surely gives it a brothy goodness!
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Veron – Yep yep, not the boring sticky egg drop soup we get at Great Wall pr China King Chinese restaurants. LOL.
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What a pretty egg drop soup! I’ve always been a big fan of egg drop soup, and the clams sound fantastic in it.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Clams make all the difference.
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I love the looks of this…I’ve had clams on the brain lately so it would seem you’ve given me a fantastic excuse to cook some.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Right on, go get some and make this egg drop soup.
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i do love a good egg drop soup. i mum makes it with spinach and meatballs. it’s well good! x
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Spinach and meatballs sound great for egg drop soup! Yummy.
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ooh, this looks great. must go buy some clams today. thanks!
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Yes, great and easy egg drop soup. :)
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Perfect. Gonna be eating this one. You know I have a love of clams, and this soup looks like a perfect showcase for them. Lovely photo too.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Matt, yes, I know you love clams. I am too. They taste so briny and sweet and perfect for soup. You should try this egg drop soup!
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Hi Bee,
Thanks for this simple, easy to prepare soup. Eggs and clams are really good for me now. I will go get some clams and make it for tonight’s dinner
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Valerie – awesome, let me know how you like your egg drop soup.
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Valerie replied:
Hey Bee, made the soup – Love it! Although I think I will add a dash of soy sauce in my egg mix. I don’t like to salt my broth too much. hehe. Thanks again.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Awesome, glad you love it. :)
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I want to have this just for the broth! :)
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I have to give it to you, RM. Your obsession with seafood and shell fish has no boundaries. I had similar version but without the shell. I think the clams are smaller, too. Yours definitely look fresh and ready to savor.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Correct, the clams in the US are bigger. In China, they use a smaller clams but the theory is the same. The egg drop soup is great with clams.
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Wow! your blog has wonderful recipes and perfect pics.
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Marc @ NoRecipes replied:
I’m totally with you on American Chinese restaurant eggdrop soup. Given the choice of MSG water with hocky pucks (wonton soup), salty wallpaper paste with sponges (egg drop soup) and hot and sour soup, I always opted for the hot and sour soup if for no other reason than the anti bacterial properties of the vinegar.
I could see how a soup like this would change anyones mind and erase all those bad experiences.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Marc – tell me about it. I wish Chinese restaurants in the US are like Japanese restaurants. I just don’t understand how they can make a great tasting cuisine into something totally unrecognizable and plain bad. The Chinese food in Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Malaysia/Singapore are soooo great. Unbelievable!
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Thank you Mythreyi, I hope you like it.
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Oooh, I love egg drop soup. And the eggs look so fluffy in this soup. Amazing. I admit I don’t do it ‘right’ either. My eggs don’t look like this at all…..:(
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
I like my eggs fluffy and in a bigger piece.
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Miakoda replied:
I wonder if you could share a few tips on how to achieve that perfect fluffy egg in the soup? It looks so tempting :) Thanks.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Miakoda, just pour the eggs into the soup and circle around. That’s it.
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This looks really yummy!!! I will try to make this soup one day.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Cool, do try it out.
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the soup looks so delicious!
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Thanks!
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I do not like sticky egg drop soup (due to the cornflour added to thicken the soup) but I do enjoy the “silky, smooth” version. Usually, I will turn off the heat, then stir in the whisked egg and make sure the egg is just cooked and not overdone.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Tiga, thanks for your tips. I learn something new. :)
Yes, the corn starch is not good.
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Thanks for the recipe. I also hate the ‘artificially’ thickened soups around here.
I’ve been following your blog for some time and like the challenge of trying to make it vegetarian. I would gladly eat your version but my wife is vege.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Hi Mr. Rebel – you can just put tofu or vegetables to replace the meat. Good luck.
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Thanks for the recipe, this was great and extremely easy! (Definately going into my keepers. :) ) Thank you.
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Rasa Malaysia replied:
Yes, and much better than the typical sticky gooey egg drop soup. :)
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blog hopped here from another blog. Your recipes and photos are making me hungry. But they all look easy enough for me to try one of these weekends. I have already bookmarked a few to try it out soon. THanks for sharing. :)
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