Hot and sour soup

Many moons ago, when I was discovering how to make soups, I did a search for hot and sour soup at David's request and came across this recipe. He had fallen ill, so I was trying out different soup recipes in an effort to cure what ailed him. It was a hit, so much so that we actually included this recipe in our little recipe book that we handed out as a wedding favor. It's unfortunate that the only time we seem to break out the soups is when one of us is sick, but as David came down with something yesterday, I decided to revive this long-forgotten recipe.

Recipe

Makes 3 cups3 cups chicken broth1/4 cup onion, sliced1 tsp ginger root, grated1/2 cup tofu, diced1 egg, beaten1-1/2 tbsp fish sauce or soy sauce1 tbsp lime juice1/2 tsp Asian chili sauce6 shrimp, shelled and deveined2 tbsp cilantro, chopped3 shiitake mushrooms, slicedPlace broth, onion, ginger and mushrooms in a pot; bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Add tofu and cook for 1 minute. Stir in fish sauce, lime juice and chili sauce; simmer for 5 minutes. Add shrimp and bring to a boil. Slowly stir in beaten egg with fork. When egg forms threads, remove from heat and add cilantro.

Musings

David declared it to be the perfect "sick food"--warm, flavorful and quick. It's definitely a dish that's out of our normal culinary purview, but it's good to be adventurous from time to time. I appreciate this dish because it's easy to make and, unlike many of the other soups we've made, doesn't take hours to boil down. A little bit of prep and 15 minutes of cook time for a thoroughly tasty (and hopefully health-improving) soup.