Tofu & Pork Soup

Name: Tofu & Pork Soup
Cuisine: China
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon shaoxing; 4 tablespoons yellow bean soy sauce; 1.25 litres (44 fl oz/5 cups) fresh chicken stock; 2 tablespoons Chinese red vinegar; 5 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in warm water for 30 minutes, stalks removed, finely sliced; a pinch of Sichuan pepper; 2 teaspoons grated palm sugar (jaggery); 250 g (9 oz) silken tofu, cut into 2 cm (¾ inch) cubes; 3 teaspoons oyster sauce; 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped; 1 tablespoon sea salt; 1 knob of ginger, peeled and cut into julienne; 150 g (5½ oz) pork neck; 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Preparation info

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Balance and Harmony

By Neil Perry

Published 2008

About

This is a very simple soup that relies on some of the tofu breaking up and helping to thicken the dish. Feel free to add a couple of chopped chillies at the end to spice it up, or a drop or two of chilli oil if you like it hot — I know I do.

Ingredients

250 g (9 oz) silken tofu, cut into 2 cm (¾

Asia
China
Soup

Method

Put the stock, sugar, oyster sauce and shiitakes into a pot and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Add the pork neck to the soup and simmer gently for a further 20 minutes, skimming the surface of any impurities. Remove the pork and finely slice the meat. Return the pork to the soup, add all the remaining ingredients except the Sichuan pepper, and simmer gently for a further 2 minut