Salted Egg Drop Soup – a twist on a popular classic made even more tasty with the addition of ground pork and salted egg.
As you may well know, I recently made some Salted Eggs using the brining method. Homemade salted eggs are really nice because one can control the level of saltiness preferred. It is also a breeze to prepare as it only requires a simple salt solution. The hardest thing is the waiting because it takes three to four weeks for the eggs to cure.
Salted Eggs
Salted Eggs are either boiled or steamed. I don’t think they are ever fried as the yolk is firm although the white remains runny. People do steam the yolks and mash them before adding to stir-fry dishes. When boiled their texture is like that of a regular hard boiled (cooked) egg. They are NOT at all rubbery like pickled cooked eggs.
These eggs are usually eaten with rice congee or used as a flavoring for other foods. A really child-friendly and tasty dish I grew up eating was Steamed Pork with Salted Eggs. The saltiness in the eggs reduces or elimates the need for more salt when cooked with other ingredients.
Salted eggs are also nice in soups. Instead of using regular eggs for egg drop soup, I decided to use one of my salted eggs. This soup together with a rice cake makes a quick and easy lunch. You may not achieved the silky strands or ribbons of egg in a classic egg drop soup but this Salted Egg Drop Soup was pretty tasty and is a good way to use those salted eggs. You can also try this Ochazuke I shared some weeks back.
Tools Used in Making This Salted Egg Drop Soup
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• Cuisinart Professional Stainless Saucepan with Cover, 3-Quart, Stainless Steel
• Pyrex Prepware 1-Cup Measuring Cup
• Chef Craft Stainless Steel Ladle

Salted Egg Drop Soup
Ingredients
- 1 salted egg
- 2 lettuce leaves (torn into big pieces)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp lean ground pork (20g)
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- Ground pepper
- 1½ cups water (360ml)
- A few drops sesame oil
Instructions
- Heat vegetable oil in a small saucepan. Add ground pork and minced garlic. Sauté till pork turns opaque, about 1 minute.
- Pour in water and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Season soup with ground pepper.
- Crack salted egg into a bowl. Gently pour it into the soup. Allow soup to simmer gently for 5 minutes to cook egg yolk. Taste soup and add a little salt if necessary.
- Add lettuce leaves and cook for another minute. Turn off heat. Pour into a bowl. Drizzle sesame oil on the top.
- Serve immediately with dried rice cake or a bowl of steamed rice and toasted seaweed.
Nutrition
Enjoy…..and have a wonderful day! 😎
cooking rookie says
This is it! This will be my dinner, for sure. With some small substitutions, because I only have cabbage and chicken, no lettuce and pork. But that will do. Thanks so much for the recipe! Just what I needed :-).
Biren says
Yes, chicken and cabbage would work. Enjoy your dinner! 🙂
cooking rookie says
I made it! It was great – so tasty and soothing! I was so swamped this week that I did not have any time to cook at all, living on Nutella sandwiches and take out pizza! This soup was my first step back to normal life :-). Thanks so much for sharing, Biren 🙂 Now when I get more time I’ll have to try those rotis of yours 🙂
Biren says
I am glad to hear that you enjoyed the soup. I usually cook all this soupy stuff when I am having lunch by myself. Of course, this recipe can be doubled or tripled to feed a family. 🙂
Making roti canai is not easy but it can be fun. It takes a little bit of practice to spread out the dough. I did show the easy rolling pin method too. http://www.rotinrice.com/2011/04/hot-hot-roti-canai-book-feature-and-giveaway/
denise @ singapore shiok says
Hi Biren – are you as tired as I am? 😉 I love how comforting this soup looks, though so simple. I think I will have fishball soup with minced chicken and lettuce for dinner tonight. No salted eggs, and actually, I have had egg drop soup countless times, but never using salted eggs before. Hmmm….think I need to tell my mum about this!
Biren says
You must be back to your project, eh? Take care that you don’t run yourself down. Yes, this soup is comforting. I like soupy lunches when I am cooking for just me. Actually a bowl of mee suah soup right now for breakfast would be great! 🙂
http://www.rotinrice.com/2011/05/mee-suah-soup/
Blackswan says
Hey Biren, what a coincidence! I’ve never drank salted egg soup in my entire life until just the other day. I was cooking chicken soup & being the lazy me, I dropped a raw salted egg into the soup instead of water which I normally do & guess what? It burst & my stock was filled with eggs!
I quickly removed the shells & not wanting to dispose the soup cause I found it a waste, I took a sip to try. Gosh, it was so tasty! It was an accidental discovery & I’m loving it!
Seeing your post makes me feel like an alien. Am I Chinese? How is it that I’ve never heard nor tasted salted egg soup before? Lol!
Biren says
We are always learning and discovering new things, albeit in unexpected ways. Salted eggs in soup is really delicious and Ann just reminded me of chan choy soup with salted eggs. Growing up, that was one of my favorite soups.
Hotly Spiced says
I love eggs and cook with them a lot but have never heard of salted eggs and am not used to cooking with recipes that take three or four weeks. That is unbelievable. I would love to try this. Thanks for introducing me to something wonderful and new. xx
Biren says
Brining the eggs are like preserving lemons. It takes a little bit of time but it is well worth the wait. 🙂 You can definitely use regular eggs if you can’t find salted eggs.
Ann@Anncoo Journal says
Biren, I remember I had egg drop salted soup when I was a little girl that my grandma used to cook with a type of vegetable that is purplish in colour. Do you know the name of it?
BTW Happy Mother’s Day to you ♥
Biren says
I think the vegetable you are referring to is called “chan choy” or Malabar spinach. Thanks for reminding me about that soup. It was one of my favorites growing up. Yes, mom did put in salted eggs occasionally. Over here, I can only buy something similar, or maybe it is “chan choy” but with green stems. I need to get some real soon to cook this soup again. 🙂
tigerfish says
Egg-drop soup using salted egg is new to me! I think it is very creative.
Jeannie says
yep, I remember having egg drop soup all too well….taste really delicious for such a simple meal.
At Home with Rebecka says
Holy Yum! This soup looks so good! It’s winter in the Colorado mountains today with temperatures in the 30’s. Yuck! I really ready for some fun in the sun! A big bowl of your luscious soup would hit the spot right now!
Biren says
We have been having a lot of rain lately and I can’t wait for things to dry up. I would love to have some fun in the sun too. 😀
I grew up with clear soups and so I cook them often. They are comfort food for me.
Sarah @ Homestyle Cooking Around The World says
This looks like a wonderful and delicious soup- the salted eggs are something different but sound good! I love the new look of your blog, also.
Ramona says
I am totally loving this soup! The ingredients sound really fun and delicious. 🙂
Eri says
Such a simple recipe and it looks beautiful!
Have a wonderful weekend my friend!
raquel@eRecipe.com says
Biren this looks great I love salted egg this is good for dinner.
Suchi says
This soup looks so yum Biren…lovely 🙂
mjskit says
I’ve never made this nor never tried it, but it sure looks good! After reading this post and some of the comments if looks like it need to try this! Have a great weekend my friend!
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
The soup must be very tasty!
PolaM says
I have to try making these salted eggs! And the soup looks great!
Raymund says
This is the first time I saw a salted egg on a soup, I will definitely try this out sounds intriguing, I know this would taste good.
kitchenriffs says
Looks terrific! I’m really enjoying your salted egg series of recipes – it’s all pretty new to me. Thanks so much. Lovely soup.