Hot and Sour Soup

There are quite a few ingredients for my liking but the results are worth it. To make it super quick and easy I gather all ingredients and tools. I gather and prep all ingredients before I start assembling. It really makes for and organized, quick and delicious soup. And it's low carb!

Ingredients:
1 bundle of green onions
1 pkg dried shitake mushrooms
1 can of bamboo shoots
1 can of straw mushrooms
1 pkg of firm tofu
1 lb of pork sliced in 1/4" julienne
48oz box of chicken broth
2 cloves of garlic
1" piece of ginger
1/2 c soy sauce
1-2 tbls chili flake (depending on how hot you want it)
2 tbls sesame oil
1/2 c lime juice (3-4 limes)
4 eggs
2 tbls cornstarch

Directions:
Place dried Shitake mushrooms in a bowl and pour 2 cups of boiling water over them and let reconstitute for 15 min.
While they are soaking open and rinse the bamboo shoots and straw mushrooms and set aside to drain. Chop green onions, bamboo shoots, and straw mushrooms into bite size pieces and set aside on a plate. (Some times I skip this step but I always end up burning my lip on a hot mushroom.) Slice tofu into 1/2" sticks and set aside on a few pieces of paper towel to drain. Slice pork (I just use a package of center cut thin pork chops.) Pull shitake mushrooms out of the water, remove stems and chop into bit size pieces. Strain mushroom liquid through a colander lined with paper towel to remove any grit.
Add sesame oil and sliced pork soup pot and cook over medium heat until opaque. Add chicken broth, reserved mushroom liquid. Using a microplane grate the garlic and ginger into the pot. Add soy sauce, chili flakes and tofu. Cook for 5 min on medium heat. Reduce heat add tofu, shitake mushrooms, straw mushrooms and bamboo shoots, green onions and lime juice. Simmer on low for 5-10 min.
Meanwhile crack eggs into bowl and beat. Add a few table spoons of water to the cornstarch and combine. Add the cornstarch to the soup while stirring. Bring back up to a boil to thicken. While stirring in one direction slowly add beaten eggs. Let simmer on low for a few minutes and serve.

Serves 6-8