Miso Soup
By Steve DunnPublished on April 2, 2024
Time
35 minutes plus 1 hour soaking
Yield
Serves 4 as an appetizer
Ingredients
Dashi
5 cups cold water 1 ounce kombu 1 ounce KatsuobushiMiso Soup
4 teaspoons dried wakame 2 tablespoons white miso 2 tablespoons red miso 1 scallion, sliced thin6 ounces silken tofu, cut into 1⁄2-inch cubesBefore You Begin
Look for kombu, katsuobushi (bonito flakes), and wakame in the international section of your local market or online. For a milder, sweeter miso soup, omit the red miso and use ¼ cup of white miso. We prefer silken tofu here but if it’s unavailable, soft tofu can be used instead. Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the dashi. For step 5, if you do not have a small fine-mesh strainer, combine the miso with 1 cup dashi in a bowl and whisk until no lumps remain, then stir the mixture back into the pan. The dashi is best made just before preparing the soup but it can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Instructions
- FOR THE DASHI: Combine water and kombu in medium saucepan and let stand for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours. Line large fine-mesh strainer with double thickness cheesecloth, letting excess hang over sides. Set strainer over large bowl or 8-cup liquid measuring cup and set aside.
- After kombu has soaked, place saucepan over medium-low heat and cook until kombu-water reaches 150 degrees (water should be steaming with bubbles forming and clinging to bottom and sides of pan but not rising to surface), 7 to 8 minutes. Using tongs or spider skimmer, remove kombu and discard or reserve for other use.
- Increase heat to high and cook until water reaches 200 degrees (bubbles should break surface just at edges of pan; do not let boil), about 3 minutes. Remove pan from heat, add katsuobushi, and let steep for 3 minutes. Drain dashi in prepared strainer. Gather sides of cheesecloth to form bundle and lightly pinch with tongs to release any liquid into bowl. Discard bundle and rinse saucepan.
- FOR THE MISO SOUP: Place wakame in medium bowl and cover with ¾ cup cold water. Return dashi to clean saucepan. Bring to bare simmer over medium heat then reduce heat to low to keep warm.
- Place white and red miso in small fine-mesh strainer. Lower bowl of strainer into dashi so miso is submerged (keep rim of strainer above liquid) and, using wooden spoon or whisk, gently press miso through strainer directly into broth, smoothing out any lumps as you press.
- Squeeze wakame in fist to drain then place on cutting board. Cut any sheets larger than 1 ½ inches into bite-sized pieces and add to dashi along with scallion. Gently stir in tofu and cook until warmed through, about 1 minute. Serve immediately.
Time
35 minutes plus 1 hour soakingYield
Serves 4 as an appetizerIngredients
Dashi
Miso Soup
Ingredients
Dashi
Miso Soup
Ingredients
Dashi
Miso Soup
Why This Recipe Works
For deeply savory, well-balanced miso soup, we used equal amounts of white and red miso for a combination of mellow sweetness, salt, and tang. Hydrating the pastes in a strainer set in the pot of hot dashi softened them enough to turn smooth, seep through the wire mesh, and suffuse the stock with opaque body and savor. Wakame sheets (rehydrated in water while the miso softened), diced soft tofu, and thin-sliced scallion rounded out the bowl.
Want more? Read the whole storyBefore You Begin
Look for kombu, katsuobushi (bonito flakes), and wakame in the international section of your local market or online. For a milder, sweeter miso soup, omit the red miso and use ¼ cup of white miso. We prefer silken tofu here but if it’s unavailable, soft tofu can be used instead. Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the dashi. For step 5, if you do not have a small fine-mesh strainer, combine the miso with 1 cup dashi in a bowl and whisk until no lumps remain, then stir the mixture back into the pan. The dashi is best made just before preparing the soup but it can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Instructions
- FOR THE DASHI: Combine water and kombu in medium saucepan and let stand for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours. Line large fine-mesh strainer with double thickness cheesecloth, letting excess hang over sides. Set strainer over large bowl or 8-cup liquid measuring cup and set aside.
- After kombu has soaked, place saucepan over medium-low heat and cook until kombu-water reaches 150 degrees (water should be steaming with bubbles forming and clinging to bottom and sides of pan but not rising to surface), 7 to 8 minutes. Using tongs or spider skimmer, remove kombu and discard or reserve for other use.
- Increase heat to high and cook until water reaches 200 degrees (bubbles should break surface just at edges of pan; do not let boil), about 3 minutes. Remove pan from heat, add katsuobushi, and let steep for 3 minutes. Drain dashi in prepared strainer. Gather sides of cheesecloth to form bundle and lightly pinch with tongs to release any liquid into bowl. Discard bundle and rinse saucepan.
- FOR THE MISO SOUP: Place wakame in medium bowl and cover with ¾ cup cold water. Return dashi to clean saucepan. Bring to bare simmer over medium heat then reduce heat to low to keep warm.
- Place white and red miso in small fine-mesh strainer. Lower bowl of strainer into dashi so miso is submerged (keep rim of strainer above liquid) and, using wooden spoon or whisk, gently press miso through strainer directly into broth, smoothing out any lumps as you press.
- Squeeze wakame in fist to drain then place on cutting board. Cut any sheets larger than 1 ½ inches into bite-sized pieces and add to dashi along with scallion. Gently stir in tofu and cook until warmed through, about 1 minute. Serve immediately.
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