Hot and Sour Soup is a beloved menu item at King Buffet, 1601 W. 23rd St.

Larry Meyer, Lawrence, has tasted a lot of hot and sour soup in his day, and he places the version at King Buffet, 1601 W. 23rd St., above the rest.

“The King Buffet soup has the right amount of hot and sour balance,” Meyer says. “I like the thickness and texture of all of the ingredients. It has the right amount of meat and veggies ratio. I even like the color of it. I have never been disappointed in their soup.”

That’s why his wife, Connie, requested the not-so-secret recipe from Go!

“I have made hot and sour soup once before just because he loves it so much, but mine was not as good,” Connie Meyer says.

“A few years back, Larry and I both had pneumonia at about the same time,” she explains. “Nothing tasted good to us but the hot and sour soup, and we did not feel like cooking. The Plum Tree restaurant was still open at that time, and I think we must have ordered it every night for a week, to be delivered, of course. We credit the soup with getting us through the pneumonia, so it does have a special place in our hearts.”

Linda Lin, manager of King Buffet, was all too happy to share the recipe so that the Meyers and Journal-World readers might ladle it out of their own kitchens.

“We are very happy to hear our customers love our hot sour soup,” Lin says.

King Buffet Hot & Sour Soup

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons black fungus (Wood Ear) or Cloud Ear fungus (available at Asian markets)

3-4 pieces of Chinese dried black mushrooms or fresh mushrooms

1/2 cake tofu (fresh, if possible)

1/2 cup bamboo shoots

1 egg, beaten

1 green onion, finely chopped

White pepper to taste (no more than 1 tablespoon)

Hot chili oil, to taste, optional

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

6 cups water (or 6 cups water and 1 cup Campbell’s chicken broth)*

1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar

2 tablespoons red rice vinegar, white rice vinegar or red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup water

Preparation:

Cut tofu into small squares.

Cut bamboo shoots into thin strips and then into fine slices.

To reconstitute the fungus, soak in warm water for 20 minutes. Rinse and cut into thin pieces.

If substituting Chinese dried mushrooms, soak to soften, then cut off the stems and cut into thin strips.

If using fresh mushrooms, wipe clean with a damp cloth and slice.

Bring the water to a boil. When it is boiling, add the bamboo shoots, fungus or mushrooms. Stir. Add the tofu. Bring back to a boil.

Stir in the salt, sugar, soy sauce and vinegar and sesame oil. Using chicken broth, you may want to add a bit more rice vinegar.

Mix the cornstarch and water. Slowly pour the cornstarch mixture into the soup, stirring while it is being added. Let the broth come back to a boil.

As soon as it is boiling, remove the broth from the stove.

Slowly drop in the beaten egg, stirring in one direction at the same time. Add the green onion and the white pepper to taste. Drizzle with chili oil if desired.

Serve hot. Serves 4.

• Adjust the ratio of water as desired.