Classic egg drop soup is a beautifully simple dish and one of my favorites when I visit a Chinese restaurant.
A ginger and garlic-infused broth is filled with thin strands of egg. This restaurant-style egg drop soup recipe is full of flavor and really quick to make.
Perfect for a busy weeknight dinner when time is short or a little pick-me-up when you’re under the weather!
What is Egg Drop Soup?
Egg drop soup is a delicious Chinese restaurant favorite! We start with a simple ginger-flavored broth and then drizzle in beaten egg to create little strands throughout the soup.
It’s so easy to make, just one pot, a few steps, and dinner is served!
Ingredients for Egg Drop Soup
Broth: The base of this recipe starts with chicken broth or chicken stock, and I flavor it with ginger and a little bit of garlic.
Cornstarch: Adding a cornstarch slurry to this soup not only thickens it up ever-so-slightly, but it also creates the perfect texture for the egg strands.
Eggs: The eggs can be slowly drizzled into the soup from a bowl. To make this soup even easier to prepare, we recommend adding the beaten eggs to a sandwich bag and snipping a tiny hole in the corner before drizzling them into the soup. This method allows for really thin strands.
Additions: There are many optional additions to egg drop soup, including tofu, mushrooms, peas, spinach, bean sprouts, sesame oil, sriracha, or even corn. I like to keep it simple with just the basics.
How to Make Egg Drop Soup
- Whisk together some of the broth and cornstarch to create a slurry per the recipe below.
- Bring all ingredients (except eggs) to a simmer.
- Slowly drizzle in the beaten eggs while stirring.
- Remove the ginger and garlic, garnish with remaining green onion and serve!
Tips
- Remove the garlic and ginger once the soup cooks. This keeps their pungent flavors from overpowering the soup, creating a more delicate flavor.
- Pour whisked eggs into a small sandwich bag and snip a corner off at the bottom to make streaming the eggs into the soup easy.
- Ensure the broth is at a simmer, not boiling while adding the eggs.
For leftovers: Keep egg drop soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat on the stove and refresh the flavors with a little salt and pepper.
More Take Out Fake Out Recipes
Egg Drop Soup
Ingredients
- 6 cups chicken broth divided
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 clove garlic whole
- 1 slice fresh ginger ½" thick
- 5 green onions thinly sliced, whites and greens divided
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- crushed red peppers to taste optional
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup of the chicken broth and the cornstarch to create a slurry.
- In a pot, bring the remaining chicken broth, garlic clove, ginger slice, and the whites of the green onions to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in the cornstarch mixture. Reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Slowly pour in the beaten eggs in a thin stream (*see note) while stirring the soup. Once the eggs are added, bring just to a boil and remove from the heat.
- Discard the ginger and garlic clove. Top with green onions and crushed red pepper flakes (if using).
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Dinner, Entree, Lunch, Main Course, Soup
Cuisine American, Asian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
More Favorite Soup Recipes
- Homemade Wonton Soup
- Lemon Chicken Soup
- Chicken Rice Soup
- Homemade Wor Won Ton Soup
- Unwrapped Wonton Soup
Recipe Inspired “Egg Drop Soup” Recipe. BHG 17th Addition, New Cook Book 2018. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018. 352. Print.
Very similar to making hot and sour soup. Same base, but hot and sour needs considerably more ingredients. This is why I always have a considerable amount of homemade chicken stock in my freezer. :)
This really hit the spot today! I actually misread the directions and chopped the garlic and ginger up very small (I also doubled the garlic). It was delicious with them left in the soup, added a few drops of Maggi seasoning and the crushed red pepper!
Hi Holly, Do you have a recipe book I can purchase? That includes the egg flower soup recipe and possibly the other Asian recipes listed here?? I still enjoy the old fashioned book way…
I do not have a cookbook yet, but I hope to one day!
Ingredients: 2 eggs lightly beaten
Tips: Ensure the eggs are very well whisked
How do you get the broth to be so yellow most store bought broths are not that yellow
You can use a homemade chicken broth which often turns out a nice color or the color will depend on the brand of chicken broth you are purchasing. Even if not as yellow it still turns out so delicious!
Not much flavor. I will try it again with a different broth.
This is some A+ comfort food- it’s quick and easy to make even when you’re sick (like I am today), and it feels great on a sore throat. Had no idea how simple this could be from scratch without that expensive packet mix.
Worst tasting version ever. My partner, who eats everything, would not even touch it. He said it was missing the typical flavor.
Oh no, sorry to hear that Raleen. Other readers loved the flavors of this soup.
Easy,simple and fast cooking recipes.Excellent tasty egg soup.
will be making your egg soup
One of the best ever egg drop soup recipe i have ever tried so far. Thanks for sharing this egg drop soup recipe with all of us.
can i use ground ginger instead of ginger root
You can but I would suggest just a very small pinch, ⅛ tsp or less. The flavor should be fairly subtle. Enjoy!
Can you use granular chicken boullion in place of chicken broth? 6 tspn. dissolved in 6 cups of booking water .
I’m sure that would work just fine.
Yummy
love all your recipes
Can you tell me what you mean by 1/2 inch slice of ginger? I’m not real familiar with cooking with fresh ginger.
Ginger is a root, you’ll want to slice 1/2″ of ginger off of the root, it will be a little disc shape.