For a hearty fusion meal full of veggies and tofu try my Vegan Hot and Sour Soup with Ramen! The perfect Asian-inspired comfort food that’s ready in under 30 minutes!
Hot and sour soup, basically, the Asian version of chicken noodle soup. Soul-hugging and comforting. This hot and sour soup is Indo- Chinese version. Yes there’s a whole sub cuisine under Indian cuisine with Chinese and inspired dishes. To this simple soup, I add in some ramen noodles to cook with the soup to make for a hearty meal.
You will love how quick and easy this Asian soup comes together! It is ready in under 30 minutes. Perfect for last-minute dinners!
The heat in this vegan hot and sour soup comes from fresh hot green chili, fresh ginger, and a dash of white pepper. While not overly spicy, it is definitely on the hotter side but the spice level is easily adjustable. The signature sourness of the broth comes from adding some rice vinegar. Don’t worry, the vinegar does not come through too much and is balanced out perfectly by the remaining broth ingredients.
Some of the vinegar will evaporate during cooking so don’t worry if the vinegar dominates right in the beginning. It will taste more and more mellow as it cooks. However, for a bolder taste, add some more vinegar and soy sauce right at the end.
MORE SOUPS FROM THE BLOG
- IP Lentil Chili. GF
- IP Mushroom Wild Rice Soup. GF
- Japanese Veggie Curry. GF
- Instant Pot Lasagna Soup with Red lentils. – So Easy
- IP Potato Chickpea Soup. GF
- Tomato Soup with Tofu Croutons.
- Cauliflower soup. GF
- Tortilla soup with red lentils. GF
Vegan Hot and Sour Soup with Ramen
Ingredients
- 5 1/2 cups (1301.23 ml) vegetable broth or mushroom broth
- 1/2 inch ginger
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 hot green chili
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce Or use 1 tbsp regular soy sauce, and 1 tsp molasses
- 1 tbsp vinegar such as rice vinegar, or white vinegar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- a good dash of white pepper
- 1 tsp sugar or maple syrup
- 1/2 cup (64 g) thinly sliced carrots
- 1 cup (96 g) chopped mushrooms
- 1 cup (70 g) thinly shredded cabbage
- 1/2-1 cup (124 g) chopped firm tofu chopped small
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 3 or 4 green onions chopped, keep most of the green parts for garnishing, and use the white and half of the green parts for the soup
- 3 oz (1 ) ramen noodles
Instructions
- Add 5 cups of broth to a saucepan over medium heat.
- Mince your ginger, garlic, and chili together so that they get crushed together. Add that to the broth.
- Add all the sauces, and seasonings, the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, vinegar, salt, peppers, and sugar to the broth.
- Once the mixture is starting to boil, add in your mushroom, carrots, tofu, and stir.
- Once the mixture is rapidly boiling, add in the cabbage.
- Mix in the cabbage, then carefully taste and adjust the flavor with the extra soy sauce, and vinegar if needed.
- Add in the white parts of green onions.
- While the soup is boiling, make your cornstarch slurry with 1 tbsp of cornstarch mixed in 1/2 cup of the remaining broth.
- Toss in the ramen noodles , and once they have broken apart, and they seem like they're about to just be al dente, add in your cornstarch mixture, and mix well. Let the mixture start to boil again, and then take off heat. You don't want to cook the ramen noodles too much. You want them to be just about done, because they'll continue to cook in the hot broth.
- Take the pot off the heat, taste and adjust salt and flavor with soy sauce,salt, vinegar etc. garnish with some pepper flakes or black pepper , and the remaining parts of the green onion, and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- you could make this recipe with glass noodles or sweet potato noodles instead of ramen.
- a small amount of Sichuan peppercorn powder would make this taste extra authentic.
Nutrition
Ingredients:
- vegetable broth or mushroom broth is the base of this soup
- garlic is a must but you can adapt the potency by reducing the amount
- chili, white pepper, and ginger are added for heat
- soy sauce is added to adjust the saltiness to the perfect level. You can use low sodium
- some sweetness to balance out the sour tangy notes – molasses and sugar or maple syrup
- the sour taste comes from adding a small amount of vinegar, such as rice vinegar, or white wine vinegar
- as for the veggies, I like adding carrots, mushrooms (for umami), and cabbage
- tofu is added in the traditional Chinese version but if you don’t like tofu, just skip
- the soup is thickened with cornstarch. You could use arrowroot instead
- green onions add some freshness to this dish
- As for the noodles, I go with a package of instant ramen noodles. Different kinds of noodles might have different cooking times and you might have to cook them separately
Tips & Substitutions:
- you could make this recipe with glass noodles or sweet potato noodles instead of ramen.
- a small amount of Sichuan peppercorn powder would make this taste extra authentic.
How to make Hot and Sour Soup:
Add 5 cups of broth to a saucepan over medium heat. Mince your ginger, garlic, and chili together so that they get crushed together. Add that to the broth.
Add all the sauces, and seasonings, the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, vinegar, salt, peppers, and sugar to the broth.
Once the mixture is starting to boil, then add in your mushroom, carrots, tofu, and mix.
Once the mixture is rapidly boiling, add in the cabbage. Mix in the cabbage, then carefully taste and adjust the flavor with the extra soy sauce, and vinegar if needed. Add in the white parts of green onions.
While the soup is boiling, make your cornstarch slurry with 1 tbsp of cornstarch mixed in 1/2 cup of the remaining broth.
Mix in the ramen noodles, and once they have broken apart, and they seem like they’re about to just be al dente, add in your cornstarch mixture, and mix well.
Let the mixture start to boil again, and then take off the heat.
You don’t want to cook the ramen noodles until they’re like completely done. You want them to be just about done because they’ll continue to cook in the hot broth. Take the pot off the heat, garnish with some pepper flakes, and the remaining parts of the green onion, and serve immediately.
Make ahead tips:
If you want to make a big batch of hot and sour broth to freeze, I recommend freezing broth and veggies without the noodles. Add the noodles when you reheat the broth.
My hot and sour soup tastes too sour! How can I fix it?
Maybe you added too much vinegar or your vinegar was too strong. Instead of diluting the broth by adding more water, try adding some more sweetness. Either some maple syrup or, a splash of orange or apple juice.
Jordan
First comment I’ve left on a recipe. So so good! I added a little more garlic and ginger than called for, squeezed in some lime juice and zest. Added a tad bit of “better than bouillon” in lieu of additional salt. So customizable and delicious. Thanks so much. Will be my go to comfort soup going forward.
Jordan
Forgot to rate! 5+.
Jordan
Vegan Richa Support
🌟 🌟 thanks for coming back.
Vegan Richa Support
Great to hear Jordan.
Sean
I have a very bad cold and wanted something hot and spicy to clear my sinuses. The amazing soup did the trick with ingredients in my pantry and refrigerator. Thanks for a great recipe. I’ll definitely make it again!
Richa
Hope you feel better soon!
Toni
THIS recipe is delicious!! Best one I have found yet! Thank you!!
Vegan Richa Support
wow – thank you so much
Joyce M.
This was great. Very easy! I used a package of ramen that we keep on hand as “storm food.” My husband ate it (he’s not vegan, kind of anti-tofu) and even had seconds.
Vegan Richa Support
way better than bunker food! glad he liked it
Carly
This soup is delicious!
I love hot and sour soup and this is both & the noodles make it filling enough to be a main meal soup!
I had this on NYE (we always have Chinese on New Years) and not only was it delicious but packed with fresh veggies & oil free!
Winner all round
Vegan Richa Support
lovely tradition Carly
Melanie
Wow. This is outstanding and very authentic tasting. It’s also super easy and fast. I’ll be adding this to our regular dinner rotation.
I’ve been on a quest for a good vegan hot and sour soup recipe for ages. Thank you!!
Vegan Richa Support
Awesome
Dee
So delicious and very easy to make. Loved by non-vegan family members too! Thank you for the recipe!
I doubled the amount of ramen noodles to make it more filling and it worked well. I also omitted the salt and it was still good.
Katie
So good!! I used to buy traditional hot and sour soup in my pre-vegan days years ago when I was sick. I remember how comforting it was.
I just made this for my partner who is a bit under the weather. I used organic mushroom broth and went with braggs liquid aminos for saltiness + maple syrup + a bit of molasses. I omitted the salt and did not have cabbage or tofu to add. Instead I added organic corn and bamboo shoots. I used organic canned green chile pepper and gluten free ramen. I added a bit of extra white pepper, black pepper and rice vinegar.
My partner loved it and so did I. Endless thank you’s!
Vegan Richa Support
good to know – thanks for popping in
Priya
This was so good! I was craving a soup and wanted to use up some ramen I’ve had for awhile. A couple of minor additions I made were adding some frozen corn at the end and also using kala namak. The final result was delicious…the soup was just the right amount of tanginess and texture. I really like how simple the recipe was, and no added oil too! I’ll definitely be making this again.
Richa
Thanks!
Darla
This was fantastic! Easy to make and a new favorite in our house. Thanks!
Richa
Awesome
Jessica
I just made this for the third time and it really is incredibly delicious. We’re already looking forward to eating the leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
Richa
Yay
Rain
I made it, you know, with the veg I had on hand. It was good.
Vegan Richa Support
the best things for soups always
Sue
Thanks Richa for another outstanding recipe. I can always rely on your creations.
Trina
I made this last night, only substitute I made was to used shaved Brussel Sprouts instead of cabbage, what I had. This is a light delicious ramen, perfect for our cool spring weather.
Thank you,
Trina
Richa
Yay! I do that too. Use whichever you have
Emily
This was such a. Excellent dinner! Just like all your recipes!!
Richa
Yay
Lisa
Loved it! Added thinly sliced onions. Posted my pic on Instagram! (spinbuf)
Richa
Awesome
Sandra
This dish is all kinds of yummy. I’m so glad I doubled it.
Thanks, Richa!
Richa
Awesome
Karen
I need to make this very low in sodium, will it come out ok if I omit the soy sauce? Thanks
Richa
The flavor will be different. Add some lemon juice and more vinegar for a summery lemon soup
Carol
Braggs’ Aminos tastes the same as soy sauce and is very low sodium. It is a great soy sauce substitute.
karen
Thank you
Michaela
This is awesome, Richal! Keep up the good work.
Vegan Richa Support
thank YOU