Jimmy Stewart and Egg Drop Soup

I stayed home from work today because I was not feeling well.  Consequently, I spent the afternoon curled up on my tiny loveseat watching the Jimmy Stewart fest on TCM (for those who are not in the know, Turner Classic Movies shows great old movies without commercials).  I just finished watching "Rear Window" -- that movie never gets old.  It is always suspenseful when Thorwald catches Leisa (Grace Kelly) in his apartment.  Besides this being a great movie, I also really love Jimmy Stewart.  He is one of those classic movie stars -- great on screen, but also seemed to actually be a nice person in real life.  Those are the sort of people that deserve to be famous.

Me and a friend went to the Jimmy Stewart Museum last summer, and he really was one of those wholesome small-town types that everybody liked.  I've never been much of a patriot, despite the fact that many people in my family have been service members (or maybe because of?), but I really do admire that old-fashioned, all-American goodness that Jimmy Stewart seemed to have.  I wish there were more people out there like him today.

Don't ask me why, but whenever one of us was sick growing up, my mom would order Chinese food and we'd watch old movies on TV.  We would always get soup and lo mein, plus whatever else sounded good.  Now, years later, any time I'm sick, that's what I want.  I'll never forget the time that me, both siblings, and my mom were all sick at once.  None of us could sleep, and we all stayed up late into the night.  The only thing on TV other than infomercials was an all-night marathon of musicals.  Each of the movies had the "follow-the-bouncing-ball" sing-along feature at the bottom of the screen, and we all sat there, pathetic as we were, singing along to "Bye, Bye, Birdie", "South Pacific", and "Oklahoma".  Ha.

Anyway, so every time I'm sick, I watch movies and eat Chinese food.  Somehow it does make me feel better...

If you don't have a good Chinese restaurant near you, it is pretty easy to make your own egg drop soup.  It is pretty good when you are not feeling well, and you can adjust the flavors depending on what you like and what you have in the fridge.  Here's my basic recipe:

Egg Drop Soup

1 carton chicken broth

1 egg, beaten

1 clove garlic, smashed

small hunk ginger root, peeled

cornstarch

soy sauce to taste

other optional ingredients: scallions, sesame oil, sherry, spinach

Put chicken broth, garlic, and ginger in a sauce pan.  Bring to a boil, and you can add a splash of sherry at this point, but it is completely optional.  Continue to boil 3-5 minutes, and let flavors steep.  Remove garlic and ginger root.  Add soy sauce to taste.

In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch and some of the hot broth until there are no lumps, then add back into the sauce pan.  The amount of cornstarch used will depend on how thick you like your soup -- I usually start with about 2 tbsp. cornstarch, but sometimes end up repeating this step after a few minutes to get the soup a little thicker.  Let the soup boil for a minute or so for the cornstarch to take effect.  

Once you have achieved the desired thickness, and the soup is actively boiling, it is time to add the egg.  It is important to do this *after* adding the cornstarch, or else the egg will come out in a big lump.  Pour beaten egg into boiling broth while stirring.  Egg will cook quickly and form small shreds.  At this point, the soup is ready to eat.

If you have any green onions around, they are a nice addition at the last minute, or drop in a few spinach leaves.  A few drops of sesame oil finish things nicely.