This is much yummier than any regular old Hot and Sour soup from a Chinese restaurant, and takes hardly any time at all, thanks to a bag of coleslaw or 'american style' salad from the supermarket. One of the key ingredients of a good Hot and Sour soup is very thinly sliced carrot and red cabbage. Rather than spending ages making little strips of vegetables, you can just throw in a bag of coleslaw mix, without the yucky pouch of ranch dressing it comes with.
First, in a large saucepan, heat up some olive oil and sauté 2 cloves of garlic and a handful of Enoki Mushrooms. (Those are those alien-looking long ones.)
After a couple of minutes, pour in 750mL chicken or vegetable broth, then add a couple of glugs each of rice vinegar, soy sauce and oyster sauce. Add some thinly chopped fresh ginger, a thinly chopped bird's eye chilli pepper, and a stick of lemon grass. Stir in your bag of coleslaw mix (minus the pouch of ranch dressing! Bin it!) and some thin slices of firm tofu.
Cover and simmer for 7 minutes. Throw in a handful of fresh soybean sprouts and serve. (Bonus points if you serve it in a soup bowl set from Chinatown. Like I did.)
