• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Recipes
  • Travel
  • About
  • Shop
  • Contact
cook with dana

Cook With Dana

Chinese Egg Drop Soup

October 15, 2021

Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe

egg drop soup with soft tofu and crab  shrimp on top

This silky 20 minute Chinese egg drop soup is inspired by our egg drop soup served at my parent’s restaurant. Silken tofu is cooked in a sweet chicken broth. Cornstarch slurry is added to thicken the soup as well as make the smooth & thick texture. Top it off with green onions for a warm comfort meal!

At our Chinese restaurant, we used to serve egg drop soup to every customer that ordered lunch. It was complimentary but everyone thought the dish tasted delicious nonetheless. This seafood egg drop soup is slightly fancier than the restaurant version because of the shrimp and crab. The dish can be versatile and some ingredients can be optional if you don’t like seafood.

egg drop soup with soft tofu and crab  shrimp on top chinese cilantro

INGREDIENTS YOU NEED FOR YOUR CHINESE EGG DROP SOUP:

The type of ingredients will affect the look of your chinese egg drop soup. I made some notes if you were to make slight substitutions to the ingredients in the recipe.

The one we make is paler in color (more white than yellow) because we used egg whites instead of a whole egg. The taste is lighter but the texture is still very creamy from the cornstarch slurry. I also recommend adding the imitation crab (if you have real crab meat, it will taste even better!) makes the soup taste slightly sweeter and more umami.

soup:

  • egg whites or whole egg
  • unsalted chicken broth
  • water
  • soft or silken tofu – Considering that the soup is very smooth, using extra soft tofu is a must for silky texture!
  • salt – adjust according to your taste and chicken broth! Especially if every chicken broth has different sodium levels.
  • shrimp – slice in smaller pieces (aim for how large the tofu size is!)
  • imitation crab or real crab meat
  • sesame oil
  • corn starch slurry

garnish:

  • green onions
  • cilantro
  • white pepper (optional)
osaki imitation crab best one at hmart
My favorite imitation crab to use. I got mine at H-Mart.

STEPS TO MAKE THE CHINESE EGG DROP SOUP:

  • Step 1. Prepare ingredients by cutting 1/2 block of tofu in small cubes. Then, chop 5-6 shrimps and 3-4 sticks of imitation crab in pieces.
  • Step 2. Make corn starch slurry by mixing 2 tbs corn starch with 1/4 cup water.
  • Step 3. Separate your egg whites from your egg yolks and then whisk the egg whites a few times. (You can use a whole egg if you like ◡̈ )
  • Step 4. In a pot on medium heat, add 1 can of chicken broth and 1.5 cups of water. Once the water is boiling, gently add tofu and 1/2 tsp salt. Then, add shrimp and imitation crab.
  • Step 5. Slowly pour your cornstarch slurry in the soup while mixing with the spoon. Boil for a minute and you will see that the soup has thickened.
  • Step 6. Next, pour your slightly beaten eggs in the soup while mixing with the spoon. Boil for one more minute and add 1/4 tsp of sesame oil.
  • Step 7. Garnish with green onions, cilantro, and white pepper powder. Hope you enjoy!
egg drop soup with soft tofu and crab  shrimp on top chinese cilantro
enjoy the egg drop soup on a cold day!

More delicious soups on a cold day:

  • korean tofu soup – soft and silky tofu cooked in an anchovy broth with red chili powder (gochugaru)
  • fermented soybean paste stew – korean fermented soup called doenjang jjigae is a funky umami soup with tofu and veggies
  • hong kong macaroni soup – macaroni cooked in chicken broth with spam for a hong kong diner feel!

Sign up for my newsletter (no spam I promise!) so you never miss a new recipe from Cook with Dana ◡̈


egg drop soup chinese
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
No ratings yet

Chinese Egg Drop Soup

The egg drop soup is filled with seafood and tastes smooth and delicious.
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time15 mins
Course: Appetizer, Main Course
Keyword: egg drop soup, soup
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

  • 2 egg whites or whole egg
  • 1 can unsalted chicken broth 14 ounces
  • 1½ cups water
  • ½ block soft tofu cut in small cubes
  • ½ teaspoon salt add 1/2 tsp more if needed
  • 5-6 shrimp peeled and de-veined
  • 3-4 sticks imitation crab or real crab meat
  • ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
  • corn starch slurry 2 tbs corn starch + ¼ cup water

garnish

  • green onion
  • cilantro
  • white pepper powder optional

Instructions

  • Prepare ingredients by cutting tofu in small cubes. Then, chop shrimp and imitation crab in pieces.
    ½ block soft tofu, 3-4 sticks imitation crab or real crab meat, 5-6 shrimp
  • Make corn starch slurry by mixing 2 tbs corn starch with 1/4 cup water.
    corn starch slurry
  • Separate your egg whites from your egg yolks and then whisk the egg whites a few times. (You can use a whole egg if you like ◡̈ )
    2 egg whites or whole egg
  • In a pot on medium heat, add chicken broth and water. Once the water is boiling, gently add tofu and salt. Then, add shrimp and imitation crab.
    1 can unsalted chicken broth, 1½ cups water, ½ block soft tofu, 5-6 shrimp, 3-4 sticks imitation crab or real crab meat, ½ teaspoon salt
  • Slowly pour your cornstarch slurry in the soup while mixing with the spoon. Boil for a minute and you will see that the soup has thickened.
    corn starch slurry
  • Next, pour your slightly beaten eggs in the soup while mixing with the spoon. Boil for one more minute and add your sesame oil.
    ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
  • Garnish with green onions, cilantro, and white pepper powder. Hope you enjoy!
    green onion, cilantro, white pepper powder

Video

@cookwithdana

egg drop soup is the definition of #goodsoup 🙌🏼 #chinesefood #foodtiktok #asianrecipes

♬ original sound – athena *ੈ✩‧₊˚

Notes

  • Add 1/2 tsp salt to 1 tsp more if needed in the soup, this will vary depending on the sodium level of your chicken broth
  • Feel free to use egg yolk if you want a slightly heavier taste and don’t mind the yellow color

Did you make this recipe? 💖

Please give it a 5-star rating or leave a comment below to share your experience! Tag @cookwithdanaa on instagram to show me your beautiful creations😊


Cook With Dana is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. When you purchase something through my amazon affiliate links, I earn a small commission that helps me produce more cooking content at no cost to you. Thank you for supporting Cook With Dana!

in Appetizer, Main Dishes, Meals Under 30 Minutes, Recipes # chinese soup, egg drop soup, good soup

Reader Interactions

you may also like
Easy Ox Bone Soup (Seolleongtang)
Turnip Cake (Loh Bak Go)
Braised Minced Pork Over Rice 肉燥饭
Easy Chinese Hot Pot At Home

Comments

  1. Ashley says

    November 3, 2021 at 4:45 am

    What type of tofu do you recommend? Would firm work?

    Reply
    • Cook With Dana says

      November 3, 2021 at 3:34 pm

      Hi Ashley!

      I recommend using soft tofu for an overall soft texture soup. Firm tofu still works though ◡̈

      -Dana

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

About Me

Hi there, I'm Dana and I create Asian recipes that are yummy and easy for everyone to make! I hope my food reminds you of a little taste of home.

Sign up & never miss a recipe from cook with dana!

Popular Recipes

Featured

Easy Ox Bone Soup (Seolleongtang)

Turnip Cake (Loh Bak Go)

Latest ‘Grams

My childhood comfort food! 👧🏻 I always look My childhood comfort food! 👧🏻 I always look forward to when my mom would make cheung fun or Hong Kong rice noodles for me as a kid on her way to work on saturday and sunday mornings. Hong Kong rice noodles are known as Cheung fun (腸粉) in Cantonese. Cheung Fun is a popular street snack in Hong Kong and is often served as a dim sum item. These rice noodles are super soft & jiggly after steaming. The rice noodles consists of many layers of noodles so it’s perfect for adding sauces on top. I recommend sauces like XO sauce (dried scallop and shrimp chili oil), hoisin sauce, peanut butter, soy sauce, and oyster sauce for the ultimate food bite! 

google ‘rice noodle dana’ for full recipe or click link in bioooo! 💖 have a lovely weekend my dumplings!
—
#noodles #hongkong #streetfood #easymeals #chinesefood #cantonese #hongkongstreetfood
Currently dreaming of this hong kong french toast Currently dreaming of this hong kong french toast and milk tea combo for brekkies 💭My secret ingredient for my hong kong french toast is dairy milk! I dip shokupan (Japanese white bread or asian style white bread) in dairy milk which really helps soften the bread for extra fluffiness and then dip in egg batter and panko bread crumbs (non-traditional method but SO GOOD!) for that extra crispy bite 😋#gonnaneedmilk

Not only is milk a great ingredient for cooking, milk contains 4 B vitamins, which helps our bodies convert food into energy. So essentially the milk in milk tea is a quick and easy way to kickstart your busy day with energy. If you’re lactose intolerant, don’t worry, lactose-free milk  has all the same nutritional benefits as traditional milk! So… when are you trying this recipe?

Learn more about the benefits of dairy milk @gonnaneedmilk or gonnaneedmilk.com

Full Recipe continued in the comments below! 👇🏼

—
 #ad #asianfood #chinesefood #delicious #breakfast #brunch #cantonese
My new favorite soup right now 😍Here’s a supe My new favorite soup right now 😍Here’s a super easy and not traditional Korean ox bone soup aka Seolleongtang 설렁탕 🥰 Super hot bone broth is topped with beautifully marbled beef, Chinese chives, green onions, and some salt and pepper to taste. Add some Korean kimchi radish and it’s chef’s kiss!

See blog post for more detail on the ingredients (like which bone broth I bought) and full recipe ◡̈ You gotta use somen noodles for this recipe. It only takes 3 minutes to make. Tip: boil noodles at the same time as the broth to make cooking fast🍜
——
#easyrecipes #beef #koreanfood #soup #asianfood #kimchi
Wishing you luck, health and prosperity with this Wishing you luck, health and prosperity with this turnip cake recipe aka loh bok go in cantonese. Gung Hey Fat Choy ([恭喜发财] my dumplings! PS. I don’t recommend saying lai see dou loi unless you’re very close to that relative or you are a young child lol

Full recipe is linked in bio or find on my bloggg 🧧🐰

I finally finished testing out this recipe (it’s beeen a few months haha)! I was struggling with the texture for a little while. Now, the recipe is good to go ◡̈  The flavor is very savory from the chinese sausage and cured pork belly (made from my dad!) and also sweet from the radish. The texture is firm but not too doughy because I loaded this up with lots and lots of radish. You will never find a restaurant that has as much radish as this homemade recipe. Lastly, I pan fried the turnip cake to give it a nice crisp at the end. 

Don’t forget Chinese New Year is celebrated on the eve (21st of January!) so have a nice dinner with your family on Saturday. Then my mom told me to not clean or do any labor on actual Chinese New Years Day (22nd of January). Wishing all you dumplings good health and wealth in the upcoming year.
——
#dimsum #chinesefood #chinesenewyear #lunarnewyear #deliciousfood #tastyfood
This egg drop soup is inspired by my parent’s Ch This egg drop soup is inspired by my parent’s Chinese restaurant 😋Silken tofu is cooked in a sweet chicken broth and cornstarch slurry is added to thicken the soup as well as make the smooth & thick texture. 

Some Cantonese restaurants serve this with real crab meat (highly recommend if you have this!) and the color is on the whiter end (hence why we’re using egg whites!). However, if you want to use the whole egg, feel free to use it! The egg yolk makes the soup more yellow and creamy. 

You can google ‘cook with dana egg drop soup’ for full recipe or find it in my link in bio! Hope you have a wonderful week my dumplings and can’t wait to show you my Chinese New Year recipes! 
🧧🐰

—
#soup #eggs #chinesefood #easyrecipes #tasty #tofu #asianrecipes
Fridge clean out time! 🙃 Crab jeon (omelette) o Fridge clean out time! 🙃 Crab jeon (omelette) or korean seafood pancake is a great recipe to use all your leftover ingredients in the fridge. For groceries, I always use the ‘first in, first out’ method meaning the older groceries need to be used before eating the new stuff. I’m chopping up leftover vegetables and onions in small pieces and mixing them together with imitation crab. The pancake may taste different depending on what ingredients you have but once you mix it with eggs and some flour (especially korean pancake mix!), it will taste scrumptious in it’s own unique way. 

The next time you stock up, make sure to keep some type of seafood in the freezer at all times. For me, I tend to buy extra imitation crab and shrimp. Then you will always have good staples to make with your leftover ingredients. 

Check link in bio for recipe or google ‘crab jeon dana’ to find full recipe and directions ◡̈ Stay dry california dumplings, there’s lots of rain here haha.

—
#koreanfood #easyrecipes #omelette #seafood #deliciousfood
2021 © Cook With Dana
made by soulmuse