I talked about miso soup in my post about Japanese breakfast, but I never gave a recipe. Well here we go!
There are many kinds of miso soup and each part of Japan has their own specialty, but today we'll be using wakame and yuba. Wakame is a type of kelp with a smooth texture and is very healthy. It's used in many Japanese dishes including salads. "Yuba" is the Japanese name for the tofu skins we used in the congee with tofu skin and pidan recipe. When used in soup, it also has a great smooth texture.
Ingredients
- 6 cups water
- 3 pieces kombu
- 1 package instant dashi (5g) -- Real dashi (fish broth), arguably the heart of all Japanese cooking, is made by boiling fermented bonito shavings. That topic would require a whole post on its own. Ironically, the most popular brand of instant dashi is called "Hondashi", which means "real" or "original" dashi.
- 1 small handful dried wakame -- It might not look like much, but these expand a lot.
- 1 handful yuba, broken up
- 1 heaping tbps miso -- Usually white miso is used, but any type will do.
- chopped green onions
Method
- Place kombu in water and bring to a boil.
- Now, the "proper" way to do this is to turn off the heat, cover for 10 minutes, then remove the kombu. You can do this if you like, but honestly I'm too lazy and I like to eat the kombu, so I skip this step.
- Turn heat to low (barely a simmer).
- Add instant dashi, wakame and yuba.
- When the wakame and yuba are fully rehydrated (5-10 minutes), add the miso.
- The easiest way to fully dissolve the miso is to push it through a sieve.
- Have a taste to see if it's salty enough. If not, add a dash of soy sauce until it's right.
- Top with chopped green onions.
Miso soup is one of the most soothing and satisfying soups. No wonder it's great for breakfast and almost any meal.
