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A bowl of egg drop soup with tofu cubes and sliced green onions, served in a red bowl on a rustic wooden table, with a red spoon and other dishes nearby.

Tofu Egg Drop Soup

by Namiko Hirasawa Chen
Tofu Egg Drop Soup is a cozy, nourishing bowl filled with tofu, egg ribbons, and fragrant ginger. It comes together in just 10 minutes—perfect for busy weeknights or when you’re craving something light and comforting.
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 5 minutes
Total: 10 minutes
Servings: 2

Ingredients

For the Broth

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Gather all the ingredients.
    Overhead view of ingredients on a wooden surface: a glass measuring cup with broth, a block of tofu on a dish, green onions, an egg, ginger, soy sauce, pepper, cornstarch, and salt in small bowls.
  • Cut 2 green onions/scallions into thin diagonal slices, keeping the white and green parts separate.
    Close-up of hands slicing green onions on a wooden cutting board; on the left, the onions are cut into thin white rounds, and on the right, the onions are cut into thin green strips.
  • Peel and grate 1 inch ginger and measure 2 tsp grated ginger with juice.
    Two-part image: On the left, a hand grates fresh ginger on a ceramic grater. On the right, grated ginger is gathered on the edge of the same grater, which rests on a wooden surface.
  • Cut ½ block medium-firm tofu (momen dofu) into ½-inch (1.3 cm) cubes. Slice it on the cutting board or see how I cut tofu in the palm of my hand in my Japanese Cutting Techniques tutorial.
    Three side-by-side photos show hands slicing a block of tofu with a knife, demonstrating how to cut tofu into pieces. The background and hands are out of focus to emphasize the tofu and knife.
  • Beat 1 large egg (50 g each w/o shell) in a small bowl. Whisk 2 tsp potato starch or cornstarch with 1 Tbsp water in a separate bowl to make a slurry.
    Two images side by side: on the left, a hand stirs raw eggs in a small glass bowl; on the right, a hand stirs a white liquid mixture in a small glass bowl. Both are on a wooden surface.

To Cook

  • Heat a pot or saucepan over medium heat. When it's hot, add 2 tsp toasted sesame oil to heat. Add the white part of the green onion and the grated ginger to the hot oil.
    A hand pours a small bowl of sauce into a pot, followed by sliced green onions in simmering liquid, then minced ginger being added to the mixture in the pot.
  • Sauté with a wooden spatula until fragrant. Add 2 cups vegetable stock/broth.
    Side-by-side images of a metal pan on a stove. Left: sliced green onions and ginger being sautéed with a wooden spatula. Right: broth is being poured into the same pan with the vegetables.
  • Season with ¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper and heat to a simmer.
    Three-panel collage: Salt and pepper are added to a pot of reddish broth with sliced green onions, then a wooden spoon stirs the mixture.
  • Add the tofu and bring the soup back up to a gentle simmer (you'll see small bubbles appear around the edges).
    Left: A hand slides cubed tofu from a tray into a pot. Right: Cubed tofu and chopped green onions simmer in a pot of reddish-brown soup on a stovetop.
  • Give the slurry a final stir, then drizzle it into the soup. Stir to thicken.
    Keeping a gentle simmer, slowly drizzle a thin stream of beaten egg in a spiral pattern around the soup pot (don‘t pour it in just one area). I place my cooking chopsticks at the edge of the bowl to guide the egg.
    Two-panel image: On the left, a hand adds cornstarch mixture to simmering soup with tofu in a pot. On the right, a hand pours beaten eggs into the same soup while stirring with a wooden spoon.
  • Let the egg sit for 20–25 seconds without stirring. Then, remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir in half of the green part of the green onion.
    A pot of miso soup with tofu and vegetables simmers on a stove. In the second image, a hand sprinkles fresh green onions into the soup.

To Serve

  • Pour the soup into miso soup bowls. Garnish with more green onion and serve warm.
    A red bowl filled with hot and sour soup containing tofu, egg, and green onions. One image shows soup being ladled, the other shows the soup garnished with sliced green onions on a wooden surface.

To Store

  • Keep the leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat until warm, but do not let the soup boil.

Notes

Variations and Customizations
  • Add Japanese mushrooms – Shiitake, shimeji, or enoki mushrooms add umami and texture.
  • Stir in vegetables – Try spinach, kaiware daikon radishes, julienned carrot, sweet corn kernels, or wakame seaweed.
  • Silken (soft) tofu – Soft tofu breaks more easily, so be sure to handle and stir gently.
  • Make it spicy – Add a few drops of la-yu (Japanese chili oil) or white pepper powder to taste.
  • Add protein – Mix things up with shrimp, chicken, or edamame.
  • No tofu on hand? Skip it and make a simple egg drop soup (kakitamajiru).
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