I like to make miso soup with white miso – the kind my sister uses every day in Japan. Her family likes the mild flavor. There are many varieties of miso paste and regional variations. You can typically find white, yellow, and red – with a much wider range of choices at Asian markets. I also used dashi powder in this recipe – a simple way to add the flavor of Japanese fish stock without making it from scratch. The dashi is optional, so leave it out if you don’t like the flavor.
Japanese cooking typically does not leave much room for improvisation – but in your own kitchen, you should feel free to experiment! Try adding mushrooms, shredded carrots, or noodles to your miso – or anything else that sounds good to you! You can increase or decrease the amount of miso to your taste. Itadakemasu! That’s “Let’s eat” in Japanese.
White Miso Soup
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 1 tsp. dashi powder
- 3 Tbsp. white miso
- 4 oz. firm tofu, cut into cubes
- 4 oz. fried tofu, cut into strips* *I love fried tofu, so I add it to my soup. You can just use *oz. of plain tofu instead.
- 3 Tbsp. dried wakame seaweed (optional)
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced, green parts only
Instructions
- In a medium pot, combine water and dashi powder. Bring the stock to a boil and remove from heat.
- Whisk in the miso until it combines with the broth (no lumps). Add the tofu and wakame and return pot to the stove to heat the soup gently – do not boil again.
- Stir gently to mix, ladle into bowls and top with green onions. Serve immediately, with rice on the side.
