Quick and Easy Miso Soup Recipe

Miso soup is a delicious traditional Japanese soup made out of miso paste, Dashi (broth), and various other ingredients, including vegetables, tofu, and seaweed. Its savoury flavours are the perfect way to experience the mouth-watering taste of umami! Here at Oriental Mart, we want to show the world the riches of authentic Japanese dishes.

Miso Paste Origin

Miso is believed to have originated from China. 1,300 years ago, miso was introduced to Japan by Buddhist priests. At the time, miso was used to preserve food during warm seasons with its fermented mixture of salt, grains and soybeans. Since, miso paste has become a beloved staple in Japan. It is used to make a variety of delicious meals and offers a variety of nutrients too – it's rich in minerals such as zinc, copper and magnesium.

Is Miso Soup Vegetarian?

Miso soup is traditionally made out of a base that consists of miso paste and broth. Sadly, many miso bases rely on ingredients derived from fish, such as Dashi, which is made using dried bonito flakes. However, you can find vegetarian Dashi or substitute it for:

• Shiitake mushrooms and dried seaweed
• Powdered or cubed broth

Ingredients

Below, we've selected two ways to make miso soup; this is because making your own dashi from scratch can take up to 1 hour in cooking time. A great way to bypass this is to use dashi powder; you can find a selection of our dashi powders here at Oriental Mart in our Food Cupboard category.

Miso Soup Dashi Ingredients:

• 4 cups of water
• 1 piece of kombu (3x5)
• 1 ½ cups of katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)
• 1 tablespoon of dried wakame

*For a quicker cooking time, the above ingredients can be substituted for 2 tsp of Dashi powder*

Miso Soup Ingredients

• 250g of cubed silken tofu
• 2 tbsp of miso
• 1 finely chopped spring onion/scallion

Miso Soup Dashi Recipe:

1. If using dashi powder, add dashi granules to 4 cups of water and bring to boil. Skip to Miso Soup Recipe.
2. If making your own dashi from scratch, combine the kombu with 4 cups of water in a medium saucepan and leave for 20-30 minutes.
3. Bring the water to simmer over medium heat; turn off the heat once the mixture is simmering. Remove the kombu from the water and stir in bonito flakes (or chopped shiitake mushrooms).
4. Bring the pot to a gentle boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat and let the mixture steep for 15 minutes.
6. In a small bowl, combine wakame and 3tbsp of water, place the bowl to the side and let it sit for 15 minutes.
7. Using a sieve, strain the dashi (broth) to separate and discard the wakame. Pour the dashi back into the original pot.

Miso Soup Recipe

1. Bring the broth to a simmer and then remove it from the heat and add miso.
2. Once the miso has dissolved, add in the tofu.
3. Serve the soup with a sprinkle of spring onions.

We hope you enjoy your quick and easy miso soup! Don't forget; you can find all of these tasty ingredients here at our online Japanese supermarket! For more delicious recipes and oriental inspiration, have a browse through our blog!