Egg drop soup
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2013) |
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| Type | Soup |
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| Place of origin | China |
| Main ingredients | Eggs, chicken broth, condiments (black pepper or white pepper), scallions, tofu |
| Egg drop soup | |||||||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 蛋花湯 | ||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | egg flower soup | ||||||||||||||
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| Alternative Chinese name | |||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 蛋花羹 | ||||||||||||||
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Egg drop soup (traditional: 蛋花湯; pinyin: dànhuātāng; literally "egg flower soup") is a Chinese soup of wispy beaten eggs in boiled chicken broth. Condiments such as black pepper or white pepper, and finely chopped scallions and tofu are optional, but commonly added to the soup. The soup is finished by adding a thin stream of beaten eggs to the boiling broth in the final moments of cooking, creating thin, silken strands or flakes of cooked egg that float in the soup. Egg drop soup using different recipes is known to be a simple-to-prepare soup in different East Asian and Western countries.
American Chinese cuisine
In the United States, egg drop soup is often one of the main soups offered in American Chinese cuisine, and is also called egg flower soup[by whom?]. Cornstarch may be used to thicken it.
Mainland Chinese cuisine
In Chinese cuisine, egg drop soups have a thinner consistency than most common Western variants. Depending on the region, they may be garnished with ingredients such as tofu, scallion, bean sprouts and corn.
Japanese cuisine
In Japan, egg is often dropped unscrambled as the topping for tsukimi (月見) udon or soba. The moon-like appearance of the whole yolk is responsible for the name, which means "moon viewing."
Western cuisine
In Italy, stracciatella, a version made of egg and parmesan cheese, is a popular variant of egg drop soup.
Similarly in France le tourin, a garlic soup, is made with egg whites which are drizzled into the soup in a similar way to how traditional egg drop soup is made.
Also in Spain, the similar and traditional sopa de ajo (literally "garlic soup") uses egg whites to thicken the broth in a similar fashion.
In Austria, egg drop soup (Eierflockensuppe[1] or Eierflöckchensuppe[2]) is a simple, traditional recipe generally made for very young children or sick people. Scrambled eggs are mixed with flour and then poured into boiling soup in order to make small egg dumplings. Spices can be added to the egg-flour mixture according to taste.
In Russia, semolina is usually boiled in the chicken stock before the eggs are whisked in for the more substantial fare, and flavored with chopped scallion and black pepper. A simple egg dough dumplings similar to lazy vareniki or the Ukrainian halushky are a frequent addition in the southern regions.
In Cyprus and Greece the egg is beaten and then slowly stirred in the soup so it does not curdle. Lemon and rice are the additional ingredients besides the chicken stock to make Avgolemono.
See also
References
External links
- "How to Make Egg Drop Soup". Archived from the original on 2012-02-07.