I’m sorry. You lose 3 points.
Because you both played a miso soup.
Oh wait, we’re not playing Sushi Go Party?
That’s right, we are talking about how to make miso soup. My mistake.
And if you’re like, “um what are you talking about?” Sushi Go Party is a fun game that’s designed around sushi and Japanese foods. There is a miso soup card that when two people play it at the same time they can’t use that card to score points.
Anyways it’s a fun game to look into. One that makes me crave sushi every time we play it.
No sushi today – that’s coming soon, be excited – for now we’ve got a warm nourishing bowl of miso soup.
Let’s makes some!
If you’re unfamiliar with miso soup it’s a Japanese soup often served at Japanese restaurants as an appetizer, it’s a light broth-y soup. What makes it miso soup is there is miso paste stirred into the broth. It often has cubed tofu, wakame seaweed, and green onions. It’s delicious and comforting!
What is miso paste though? Miso paste is made by fermenting soybeans. It’s salty, it’s nutty, and it’s super delicious stirred into soup!
And yes, it has those healthy gut-friendly probiotics we talked about in my how to make homemade sauerkraut post! YAY fermented foods!
Like any good soup we start with a good broth. Traditionally the broth of miso soup is made using dried bonito flakes (pictured above), AKA fish flakes. AKA a nice smokey flavor. The bonito flakes are optional if you want to keep this soup vegan or just want to keep the ingredients simple.
This is why I also use chicken or vegetable broth to make the miso soup. This results in a more flavorful soup and will allow you to not miss out if you want to omit the bonito flakes.
P.S. I have shared Amazon links to all the unusual products I used, in the recipe below.
Wakame seaweed (pictured above)!!! It’s okay, don’t be scared!
I love using wakame because you purchase it dried and add a little water, let it sit for 1 to 2 minutes and then they expand and double in size. They’re crunchy, super healthy for you, and perfect in the miso soup.
Don’t worry, they’re pretty mild in taste. You won’t feel like you’re eating the ocean or anything.
Next, we have the tofu.
Of course tofu isn’t always in miso soup but I enjoy it when making my own so that I can get a good dose of lean plant based protein. Meal in one!
Normally silken tofu is used in miso soup but I like the extra firm tofu because it doesn’t fall apart as easily in the broth. In most cases plain tofu, that’s barely cooked is blah and boring but in miso soup it absorbs the flavors of the broth and is a nice little tender silky texture to the soup.
Also, I add mushrooms because mushrooms are always needed in life and I think they add a lot of nice flavor, IMO they are necessary!
That’s pretty much all of the unusual ingredients needed for miso soup.
Miso soup only requires 1 pot and 20 minutes to make! Easy weeknight dinner here we come!
It is also gluten free, dairy free, vegan adaptable, and packed with good-for-you ingredients.
Comforting, salty, light, this miso soup makes the perfect winter time meal. OR make it as a side to any other Asian dishes you enjoy.
Some suggestions are (not necessarily Japanese recipes):
- chickpea and mushroom stir fry with fired eggs
- easy gluten free lo mein
- healthy general Tso’s chicken
- cauliflower fried rice with shrimp
I hope you love this miso soup recipe as much as we do.
And don’t worry, you won’t lose 3 points for eating miso soup with someone. Seriously, you need to play Sushi Go Party!!!
Trust!
Nourishing Miso Soup with Mushrooms
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 4 to 5 1x
- Category: entree, soup, healthy, easy, one pan, 30 minutes
- Cuisine: gluten free, vegetarian, vegan, dairy free, superfood
Description
Simple 20 minute miso soup recipe. It’s packed with good-for-you ingredients and is easily customizable. The perfect weeknight meal.
Ingredients
- 4 cups low sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 cup filtered water
- 1/2 cup bonito flakes (see notes)
- 8 ounces mushrooms, thinly sliced (can use cremini or shitaki)
- 1 to 2 teaspoons gluten free soy sauce (or tamari or coconut aminos)
- 1/2 cup miso paste (see notes)
- 1/4 cup dried wakame seaweed (see notes)
- 8 ounces extra firm tofu, cut into small cubes
- 3 to 4 green onions, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Make broth: In a sauce pot bring the stock and water to a boil. Add the bonito flakes to the hot stock and allow it to simmer for 1 minute. Strain the bonito flakes from the stock and discard – return the stock back to the pot.
- Cook mushrooms: Stir in the sliced mushrooms and the soy sauce. Cover and allow the broth to simmer for 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms have reduced in size and look cooked.
- Add the miso paste: Stir the miso paste into the warm broth – it may take a minute for the miso paste to dissolve.
- Soak the wakame seaweed: Add the dried wakame to a small bowl and add cold water to cover. Allow the wakame to sit for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the wakame has expanded and absorbed most of the water – see the picture in the post.
- Finish: Stir in the soaked wakame, and the cubed tofu. Allow the soup to simmer for 1 minute to heat everything through.Taste and add more soy sauce if more saltiness is needed. Remove from the heat and stir in the green onions.
- Serve: Serve the soup immediately and top with extra green onions.
- Leftovers: This soup will keep in the fridge for up to 2 days – more than that and the tofu begins to fall apart in the soup. Really good leftover because the flavors develop more.
Notes
Bonito flakes: Bonito flakes are dried pieces of fish flakes – it’s got a very smokey flavor. It is traditional for miso soup but can be omitted if you can’t find it. There will be plenty of flavor from the broth and miso paste.I used Eden brand
Miso paste: The flavor of your miso paste will alter the soup. White miso paste is most mild in flavor, brown and red are strongest. I like to use a brown miso paste. I can’t find the brand of miso I bought in my store on Amazon. This seems like a good one that I will try it next time.
Wakame seaweed: If you can’t find wakame than you can use nori sheets (used for sushi) and cut them into strips. I like the wakame because it’s got a subtle crunch to it whereas the nori gets mushy but either one adds great flavor.I used Emerald Cove brand
Where to find ingredients: I found my ingredients at a health food store or the health food section of my regular grocery store. You could also find them at and Asian grocery store. You can even find them on amazon (each ingredient is linked above). Just make sure the miso paste is organic and fermented.
Vegan option: To keep this soup vegan omit the bonito flakes completely and use vegetable broth rather than chicken stock
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