Tofu is vile. Skip the tofu.
I DID NOT</b> just hear you say that you used firm tofu in that soup!
Westie shrudders at the mere concept of [horrified look] FIRM TOFU [/horrified look]... it's an abomination to Asian cooking!
It would have tasted so much better if you'd listened to our advice and used medium firm!
Sheesh, and you wonder why tofu has that "styrofoam" like taste and texture to it! Sh*t, man... eating that FIRM TOFU crap is just like eating styrofoam... you should have just saved your $$ and not bought it and just used a couple of styrofoam cups instead!
Tofu is a fabulous, healthy food. If more people ate it instead of stuffing their cake holes full of animal matter and grease, there'd be a lot less heart disease in the world. Now have a nice day!
vile, vile, vile...
How did the soup turn out, TigerBaby? I love Hot&Sour Soup, just not tofu obviously...

It turned out pretty well...
The recipe I used has something missing, although I haven't been able to put my finger on it yet. (Seaweed? Sprouts of some sort?) The firm tofu worked well - it didn't fall apart, but wasn't the consistency of foam rubber. :)
Great, Tiger! Tofu never has the consistency of foam rubber, with the exception of 'koya-dofu', a kind of tofu which has been freeze-dried. It's edible, but I personally am not crazy about it. Used in a lot of expensive Japanese dishes...

#16,
You may have left out bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, or a black fungus akin to tree bracken.
Chinese hot 'n sour soup doesn't usually use seaweed or sprouts.
Would have to agree with Daikan about the bamboo shoots...
FWIF, this is what Cloud Ear fungus that Daikan refers to
looks like, when seen packaged in the Asian grocery stores..