TracyFood

About miso soup (the very quick breakfast version). 22 September 2007 12:48 pm

Posted by Tracy in : advice,breakfast,cooking,eating,health,recipes,soup,tea,vegan,vegetarian , trackback

I could not decide which of many silly slogan-type catchphrases to subtitle this post with, so instead I will get them all out of my system right now:

Miso soup is fun and easy!
Miso soup: for strength!
Miso soup: it’s what’s for dinner!
Miso soup: the breakfast of champions!

Okay, so that last can take a little getting used to, but if you need an excuse, try this recipe the next time you’ve got a head cold and need to consume mass quantities of hot fluids. Remember: when you’re all congested and whatnot, you can’t taste anything very well anyway (not that I’m speaking from the experience of the entire freaking last week).

What You Need (Ingredients and Equipment)

Note: this recipe makes one very large serving, suitable for a big “I’m sick and rocking the hot fluids” breakfast, but I still recommend serving it with tea — perhaps echinacea for the placebo effect, or some kind of green tea if you’re feeling the Asian theme. Also, the chopped veggies are by far the most time-consuming part of this recipe, so if you make extra, your next batch of miso soup will be that much faster and easier (just make too many and store the leftovers in the fridge).

1/2 to 1 cup thinly sliced vegetables: anything you don’t mind eating raw or barely cooked — most recently I had carrots, broccoli, radishes, and green onions, but really just use whatever you’ve got around. Shiitake mushrooms are good, and finely minced fresh ginger is always nice when you want to clear your sinuses.
1-2 tablespoons miso paste (I like using a mix, like red and white, or barley and white, but I realize not everybody is going to have multiple kinds of miso hanging around their fridge)
soy sauce
2-3 cups stock or water
some way of boiling the stock and/or water, like a microwave or tea kettle
two heatproof containers, one for eating from, the other suitable for pouring — I like using a Pyrex measuring cup
a spoon

What You Do

If you’re using a microwave, heat 1-2 cups water or stock in a container suitable for pouring, until nearly boiling (one or two minutes is usually plenty but microwaves vary). It’s okay if it actually boils; you’re setting it aside to start the next step anyway. Set the hot stock aside, and nuke the chopped veggies and just enough water to cover them in the bowl you plan to eat from, on high until the water is really hot, even boiling (again, maybe 1-2 minutes). While the veggies are cooking, gently blend 1-2 tablespoons of miso paste into the hot water or stock. When the veggies are done, slowly drizzle the miso mixture into their cooking water as you eat, seasoning with soy sauce to taste.

If you’re using a pot or kettle, the procedure is almost identical, except you’re pouring boiling stock or water over the veggies to cook them, and then letting the water cool off a little before you use it to thin the miso as described in the previous paragraph (waiting a little also gives you time to brew tea, and lets the veggies cook a little more).

Whatever you do, DO NOT BOIL THE MISO. EVER. Raw food maniacs will tell you some hooey about how this destroys the enzymes and beneficial bacteria and whatnot, but really the thing about overcooked miso is it loses a lot of its taste, and if you’re making this to fight a cold, chances are you’re not tasting much anyway so why make matters worse — I mean, blander?

Finally, for a slightly more substantial meal, you can add small cubes of firm or silken tofu to the soup. But really, the point of this exercise is to consume lots of hot fluids, for your health. And get some rest. Because if you haven’t got your health, then you haven’t got anything.

And, um, sorry this post is so late.

janelle

This sounds delicious and easy too! Miso has been suggested as a great food during labor (easy to digest and chock full of goodness) and this recipe has a great take anywhere, make anywhere feel. But we’ve never actually bought miso paste before–is there anything we should look out for or be aware of when shopping for miso?
Peter L.

Mmmm. Miso! Not only does it make a tasty soup, but Mixing 3 parts miso to 2 parts vinegar to 1 part mirin (sweet cooking alcohol), makes a tasty marinade for sauteed mushrooms. Also carrots. Or carrots and mushrooms. Or other root vegetables, I would imagine. And miso keeps pretty well in the fridge for a long time, so it’s handy!
Peter L.

Argh. Hit “post” too soon. I am sure Tracy has her own ideas, but I recommend trying different things, assuming you can get a range of misos.

Obviously, a Japanese grocery is your best bet, but pan-Asian groceries will usually have some, Whole Foods often stocks it, and coops and health food stores will sometimes have a selection. I have never seen it in a “regular American grocery” — you might, depending on where you live, though.

So — I mostly cook with white and red miso. White miso is generally sweeter and lighter in flavor, usually used for soups. Red miso (which I like) is “punchier” — stronger and saltier. I use it for marinades, although I have also used it in soups and other things (miso makes a good topping for oilier fish, like mackerel, assuming you eat fish — and I have seen it brushed on grilled tofu and vegetables. There are about a million different kinds of miso, so getting a lighter and darker style and trying them is a good idea — then experiment…..