Virtuous Asian Meatball Soup

I like it when I'm a virtuous person. Growing up a Protestant Wisconsinite I was under the impression that virtuousness was the ideal state of being. Naked in hot tubs? That was for California girls. Getting up early to help at the church rummage sale? That was for us. Occasionally our plight of hard work and God-fearing hours would lead not to basements full of dusty leisure suits and jaundiced lighting, but to something with a more sensual reward, like, say, u-pick strawberries. Although now that I think about it I did buy my first copy of The Great Gatsby at a church rummage sale. I bought it because it had Robert Redford and Mia Farrow on the cover, and as a 12 year old I was deeply in love with Robert Redford. If he had been on the cover of Atlas Shrugged I would have snatched it up and tried to enjoy it.
I have since moved south, and then west. With those moves I have weakened my resolve against the hedonistic lifestyle, and have even been naked in a hot tub, although I won't say I enjoyed it.
I indulge in all sorts of pleasures, particularly those of food and drink, and every now and then my Midwestern superego will tsk tsk in my ear. If I've had a weekend of duck fat fried potatoes, horseradish cream sauce, puff pastry stuffed with the first of the morels, and possibly some country ham, that superego will lay out ideas for low cost and low calorie dinners. This austerity usually lasts a night or two, at most, but it seems enough to make me feel thin-ish. I'm also relieved that these meals usually clear out the 'frig of the leftover hamburger or ground pork or roast whatever from the weekend. I'm also thrilled with the economy of it all. In short, they make me feel virtuous.

My Virtuous Asian Meatball Soup

Meatballs:
5 oz raw ground beef leftover from your caramelized onion and cheddar burgers
2 T toasted sesame seeds, black or white
1 large clove garlic
An equal amount of ginger
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1 T minced green onion or shallot

Blend ingredients and form into small meatballs the size of a fat grape. Brown over medium heat, drain and set aside.

Soup:
4 cup stock, whatever homemade stock you have on hand
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp vinegar, black or sherry
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 cup vegetables--thinly sliced mushrooms, shredded greens, julienned carrot--whatever you have on hand
1 egg
scallions and/or cilantro

Bring stock to simmer. Add sugar, soy sauce and vinegar and stir to dissolve. Add vegetables and meatballs and simmer for about a minute or so.
Stir egg vigorously. Add to simmering soup in a steady stream.
Season to taste and serve with chili sauce and thinly sliced scallions and/or cilantro.
I also like to add frozen dumplings or leftover rice or noodles to the soup.