Indirect Heat Is Key For A Silky Smooth Egg Drop Soup

Egg drop soup is delicious and nourishing, and with its beautiful eggy ribbons, the dish looks more complicated to make than it really is. In fact, it's one of the easiest Chinese soups to put together; however, there's a crucial tip you can follow to make perfectly silky smooth homemade egg drop soup every time.

The key lies in the cooking method and requires some patience on your end. To ensure the eggy ribbons are intact and silky, use indirect heat. This means that by the time you add in the beaten eggs, you should have turned off the heat or removed the saucepan or pot of thickened soup from the heat. This trick ensures the eggs won't overcook and become rubbery or dry in boiling hot soup and stay airy and light.

To do this, bring seasoned water or chicken or vegetable broth to a rolling boil. Stir in cornstarch slurry and once the soup has thickened to your desired consistency, give it a good swirl and bring it to a boil. Turn off the heat and once the bubbles subside, give the soup a good stir before pouring in the beaten eggs. You want the soup to keep swirling and egg ribbons to form, but don't stir the eggs in the soup, as that would break the fragile ribbons into undesirable pieces.

Aside from cooking the eggs in indirect heat, there's another trick to ensure the egg ribbons will be tender, soft, and light in your soup. Lighten the eggs first by beating them with a little water or milk. The rest of the steps stay the same as aforementioned. 

After you're done making your soup, be sure to season it with white pepper and top with chopped scallions. Also, consider adding a kick of umami flavor to egg drop soup with seaweed. If you feel your egg drop soup is a bit light, you can also bulk up the dish by adding vegetables like spinach or mushrooms. You can also consider making a hybrid soup by adding egg ribbons to our delicious hot and sour soup recipe. 

While eggs are a pantry and kitchen staple, sometimes, they can be tricky to work with. We've covered some of the biggest mistakes you're making with eggs. Of course, now with our trick, at least you'll be making the best and silkiest egg drop soup moving forward.