Food: The Good #23

Miso Soup

Kombu Dashi Stock

2 cups cold water
1 4-inch-square piece dried kombu (Japanese kelp)*

*substituted korean kelp

Directions

The preferred way to make this stock is to let the water and kombu soak overnight, covered, in the refrigerator. There is no need to apply heat.
Alternatively, put the cold water in a saucepan and add the kombu. Allow 15 minutes for the kombu to infuse the water and then turn the heat on to medium-high. As bubbles start to appear, discard the kombu (or it will become bitter) and remove the pan from the heat.

Kombu Dashi Stock Recipe

Miso Soup

2 cups kombu dashi stock

4 cups water
3 tablespoons miso paste
1 (8 ounce) package silken tofu, diced
2 green onions, sliced diagonally into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 cup kombu

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

Directions

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat bring dashi stock to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and whisk in the miso paste. Stir in tofu. Then stir in mushrooms and seaweed. Separate the layers of the green onions, and add them to the soup. Simmer gently for 2 to 3 minutes before serving.

Miso Soup Recipe

Rating: 4.5 stars

Time: 20 minutes

Comments: Dashi stock can actually be made from several different ingredients, including fish. Kombu dashi means that it's seaweed stock. Miso soup can be made with other kinds of stock too. I used Korean kelp instead, and whole bunch of it, so I'm not sure how they influenced the flavor of the stock. I was really just trying to focus on flavor this time around, next time I will have to make the soup a little more presentable/easier to eat by 1) using less seaweed 2) cutting up the seaweed into bite size pieces. Other than that I thought it was a good miso soup.