Chicken Corn Soup
A thick, gently peppery soup of shredded chicken, sweet corn and silky egg ribbons, in the style of Pakistani Chinese restaurants. Easy to make at home on a cold evening.
Ingredients
Equipment: Medium heavy-based pot with lid, fine sieve, blender or hand blender, small bowl for the cornflour slurry
Method
Put the chicken, 1.5 litres cold water, ginger, garlic, peppercorns and 1 tsp salt in a pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and skim off the grey foam that rises.
Reduce the heat to low, cover with the lid slightly ajar and simmer until the chicken is cooked through (74°C in the thickest part) and the meat pulls away easily from the bone.
Lift out the chicken and set it on a plate. Strain the stock through a sieve into a bowl, then return about 1.2 litres to the pot. Discard the ginger, garlic and peppercorns.
When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the bones and shred the meat very finely with your fingers or two forks. Meanwhile, put the sliced green chillies in a small bowl with 60 ml vinegar and set aside for serving.
Blend half a cup of the corn with about 100 ml of stock until nearly smooth. This gives the soup body and a creamy sweetness.
Bring the stock to a simmer. Add the whole corn, the blended corn, soy sauce and white pepper. Simmer gently until the corn is tender and the broth tastes sweet.
Stir in the shredded chicken. Mix the cornflour with 100 ml cold water until smooth, then pour it in a thin stream while stirring. Simmer until the soup turns glossy and lightly coats the back of a spoon.
Lower the heat so the soup barely bubbles. Pour the beaten eggs in a thin stream from a height while stirring slowly in one direction, so they set into soft ribbons. Cook for about a minute.
Turn off the heat. Stir in the 1 tbsp vinegar and sesame oil, then taste and adjust salt and white pepper. Ladle into bowls, top with spring onions and serve with the chilli sauce and green chillies in vinegar.
Cooking tips
- Add the cornflour slurry in a thin stream and stir constantly to avoid lumps. Re-stir the slurry just before pouring, as the cornflour settles quickly.
- For the finest egg ribbons, make sure the soup is barely simmering and pour the egg slowly. A rolling boil will break it into small bits.
- White pepper gives a warm taste; add it in small amounts and adjust at the end.
- Do not skip the bones. They give the stock a fuller flavour than boneless chicken and water alone.
Substitutions
- Use boneless chicken breast (300 g) with 1.2 litres of ready chicken stock if you are short on time. The flavour will be lighter.
- Use one 400 g can of cream-style corn instead of blending the kernels; reduce the cornflour to 2 tbsp.
- Replace white vinegar with fresh lemon juice for a milder sourness.
- Skip the eggs for an egg-free soup; it will still be pleasantly thick.
Serve with
Serve very hot in small bowls with chilli sauce and green chillies in vinegar on the side. It goes well with vegetable fried rice, crisp spring rolls or plain crackers for a light dinner.
Storage
Cool within two hours and refrigerate in a covered container for up to 2 days. The soup thickens as it sits. Freezing is not recommended because the egg and cornflour change texture.
Reheating
Reheat gently in a pot over low heat, stirring often and adding a splash of water or stock to loosen it, until steaming hot throughout (at least 74°C).
Nutrition per serving, estimated
Not shown for this recipe because it can’t be estimated reliably (for example, oil absorbed during deep frying varies a lot).
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