When I want a Chinese soup in a jiffy, egg drop soup is the first thing that comes to my mind. Egg drop soup, also known as egg flower soup (dàn huā tāng) is a Chinese soup of wispy beaten eggs in boiled chicken broth. These 5 simple and easy egg drop soup recipes take less than 30 minutes each to cook from start to finish and they’re perfect for a quick, healthy meal!
Egg drop soup is perfect as an appetizer or as a light meal. Whenever I cook this, I’ll check what’s available in my fridge to add to the soup. You can easily turn the soup into a more substantial meal by adding ingredients such as:
- tofu
- fresh mushrooms (shiitake, enoki or shimeji)
- frozen vegetables
- seaweed
- prawns
- tomatoes
Usually, I’ll add one to two extra ingredient besides the stock and egg as I like to keep my egg drop soup simple without adding too many ingredients. That’s how I interpret this soup – quick cooking with minimal hassle.
The cornstarch mixture called for in an egg drop soup recipe is optional. It’s to thicken the liquid and will not affect its taste. So to thicken a soup, I will use a little cornstarch but not too much or it will make the soup gluey. Don’t use cornstarch if you prefer a light soup.
Egg drop soup is most enjoyable when the eggs are wispy and soft so try not to overcook the eggs. To prevent overcooking, turn off the heat immediately before you pour the eggs into the pot. Don’t worry about undercooking the eggs as the remaining heat will be hot enough to cook them.
Use the egg whites only instead of the whole egg if you are concerned about cholesterol levels. Serve immediately and enjoy it hot!
1. Chinese Egg Drop Soup
Turn a simple egg drop soup into something more substantial with fried prawns and fresh sweet corn. Delicious, quick and easy recipe!
2. Seaweed Egg Drop Soup
I’ve always enjoyed the taste of seaweed and they are so delicious in soups. If you also love seaweed, add some into your egg drop soup. I included some prawns and turned it into a light one-dish meal.
3. Egg Drop Soup with Mint Leaves
Don’t you just love the refreshing and uplifting aroma of fresh mint? I love having it in chocolates, ice-cream, mint sauce, soups and much more. If you have mint leaves planted in your home, this is one of the ways you can cook them. If not, buy them from a wet market or the refrigerated section of a supermarket.
Cook and prep this soup in 20 minutes.
4. Chicken Egg Drop Soup
Egg drop soups are a great way to make use of leftover ingredients in your fridge. In this recipe, I used leftover chicken to create this delicious soup with minimal fuss. Great for times when you feel peckish but not in the mood for a full on cooking session.
5. Tomato Egg Drop Soup
Savory and tangy at the same time, this tomato egg drop soup will surely whet your appetite for more. My kids loved this a lot. It takes less than 15 minutes to cook. Serve this as an appetizer or a light meal.
Have you tried making your own egg drop soup yet? I hope you’ll try out these recipes and let me know which is your favorite. Do share with me in your comments below!
Let’s connect on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or Google+. See you again and happy souping!
P/S: If you like eggs, check out these eggy recipes too:
#1 Steamed Three Eggs
#2 How To Steam Eggs With A Silky Texture
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I love egg drop soup. It’s so easy to make and so quick as well.
I love the 5 easy ways you’ve listed. I like the flexibility of this soup- whatever you have at hand can go in it. Most of the time I add chicken as that is the go to meat in our household.
Thanks for sharing!
I love making soup, especially in winter but I’ve never made egg drop soup. I’ll have to try these – they look very tasty and looks like it wouldn’t take long to make which is always a bonus.
Hi Yvonne
Thank you so much for your site…i have a friend in China studying she has been there 5 years now i hve been nagging her to give me chinese recipes but she is not being helpful sgmhe always tell me its complicated you cant do it.
When i came across your site i shouted “hooray” you know why coz your site offers definately more than wha she could have given.
So im gonna stick around your site more often!
Hi Yvonne, thanks for this post. I love cooking and love trying new things. This egg drop soup is worth trying and I think I am going to start by making the chicken egg drop soup because I like any recipe that has chicken in it.
Hi Yvonne,
Thanks for sharing such healthy and tasty recipes. Whenever I dine at a Chinese restaurant, I always enjoy the egg drop soup. My daughter especially loves it. I will try to make the tomato egg drop soup. I am sure it will be tasty.
Carol
The tomato egg drop soup my elder daughter’s favorite and one of mine too. Hope you’ll enjoy it as much. 🙂
Wow Yvonne,
These look yummy. My husband is a big fan of egg drop soup. Would you please explain exactly how to cook these soups and add the egg?
My egg drop soup is terrible, and I think I’m doing it wrong. It tastes OK, but it doesn’t look pretty.
Hi Elizabeth,
Don’t worry if your egg drop soup doesn’t look pretty as long as it tastes alright. You can find the recipes by clicking on the soups’ picture or name. 🙂
Wow it all looks so good! I really enjoy egg drop soup from a Chinese restaurant that I frequent and I never knew that it was that simple to make.
Definitely going to try some of these! Thanks for sharing the recipes. I’ll start with the basic one first, then go from there.
Wow! Now I’m hungry! Those soups all look amazing and the recipes seem delicious and easy to follow. Have you got a recipe for hot and sour soup?
Hi Mike,
Thanks for writing in. I don’t have a recipe for hot and sour soup yet but I’ll let you know when I do! In the meantime, you can check out my other soup recipes here and here.
okay, i am SO going to make one of these this weekend. The one that catches my eye is the mint egg drop soup-i am gluten free so these are all AMAZING choices for anyone on a gluten free diet. Yummmmm.
Hi Hillary,
I love the mint egg drop soup too! The minty taste makes a refreshing contrast to the warm and comforting broth. Please share if you enjoy the soup! 🙂
Hi Yvonne,
I like stopping by the kitchen every once in a while and soups are definitely the easiest to make. I never knew that there were alternatives for an egg drop soup and that seaweed is certainly going to be on my next grocery items list.
Thanks for sharing.
Rocky
Actually I was about to rest for the day. The egg drop soup looks yummy and sounds pretty easy to cook. For me living in Hong Kong, soup is common in most of the restaurants. You have made it so simple and wondering whether there is any MSG being put in? Overall it is informative content and thanks for sharing.
Hi Stanley,
There is no MSG in this egg drop soup. I’ve checked the ingredients used for the chicken stock and none was listed. You can also use homemade soup stock for the egg drop soups. Thanks for dropping by! 🙂
I love egg drop soup…but I’ve never made it. I might get brave with these recipes. The savory with chicken sounds wonderful.
I love Chinese food, but strangely enough I don’t eat egg drop soup very often. However, now that I know how easy it is to make at home, I am definitely going to make it more! It’s such a great, comforting soup. Thank you for sharing the recipes!
You’re welcome, Samantha. I hope you’ll enjoy them 🙂
Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed reading these recipes. I hate cooking, but love collecting recipes if that makes sense. I will attempt them if they’re easy enough and yours definitely are. The images are great – at least I know what I’m aiming for. Of course being a vegetarian yours are suitable, an added bonus.
Thanks Hindy. I know you can do it! I love collecting recipes too 🙂
hi!
this egg drop soup looks like such a comforting soup! I could not figure out where the eggs were until I realized the ribbons were the eggs. 🙂 It also seems like such an easy soup to make too. I would love the mint version I think as I am a big mint fan. I like that you provide variations on the basic soup.
Hi Emily! Yes, the swirly ribbons are the eggs and the egg drop soup is eggstremely easy to make 🙂 I hope you’ll like the the mint version. I’m a big fan of mint too 🙂