Dinner Tonight: Miso Soup 101 Recipe

By
Blake Royer
Blake Royer is a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
Blake Royer
Blake Royer is a former chef, food blogger, and food writer who contributed recipe ideas and Chicago-based content to Serious Eats from the website’s earliest days.
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Updated Aug. 09, 2018

I didn’t know much aboutmisobefore I picked some up at the grocery store the other day. Since then I’ve learned that it is a Japanese fermented paste that contains grains or soybeans, sea salt, and a special mold calledkōji-kin,and is aged anywhere from a few days to a few years. It's used to flavor sauces, as a marinade for meats, and as an integral part of soups. Miso is also praised for its health benefits, including loads of amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and digestive enzymes. The flavor is very subtle yet quietly rich, with a nice fermented tang.

The best part is that you’re not even supposed to cook it much; all the hard work has been done for you in the fermenting, and excessive heat hinders its health benefits. So a miso soup can be as simple as bringing some water to boil, adding vegetables, cooking them until tender, and stirring in miso paste off the heat. With temperatures dropping, a rich, simple soup was just what I needed. I went to thewebsite of South River Miso, who made my Three-Year Barley variety (it turns out they’ve beenprofiled in theNew York Timesand adhere to old traditions like blending up their mixtures by stomping on them with human feet), where they offered a recipe calledMiso Soup 101.

The result was deeply satisfying, and probably the healthiest thing I’ve ever cooked. The flavor was very, very subtle—almost too much so—but I think it was a good introduction to the taste of miso. I’m eager to try other preparations—this recipefromThe Breakaway Cookwith ginger and fennel is enticing--but for now, I’m just happy to be in the club.

Recipe Facts

Cook:30 mins
Total:30 mins

Rate & Comment

华体会应用下载

  • 1 medium onion, sliced thinly in half moons
  • 1 cup chopped greens, such as kale, collards, spinach, etc.
  • 1 medium carrot cut into thin rounds
  • 1三英寸片裙带菜海洋蔬菜(可选)I didn’t have this)
  • 1/2 package soft tofu (optional)
  • 1 quart water
  • 3 to 4 tablespoons light or dark miso
  • Chopped scallions or parsley for garnish

Directions

  1. Bring the water to boil in a sauce pan while you slice the onions, carrots, and optional wakame. Add them to the pot, bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer for ten minutes, covered.

  2. Add the greens and simmer, uncovered, until tender. If using tofu, add 5 minutes before the greens are finished.

  3. In a small bowl, add a ladleful of the soup stock to the miso paste, and stir until blended. Reduce the flame to low, add the diluted miso, and stir well. Taste for seasoning, adding salt or a bit more miso. Serve and garnish.

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