Friday, June 11, 2010

Miso Soup - Homemade that is....

If you don't already know, Miso Soup is the broth based soup that you order at a Japanese restaurant and it comes in a little bowl. Sometimes if you don't stir it up it looks a bit cloudy, it's very salty, has chunks of tofu and green leafy things floating around in it. Even as I type that - I admit I do always order it while out for sushi. Though, after I tasted my surprisingly easy homemade Miso soup, I'm not sure that I can go back to ordering restaurant style again.

Also, I encourage you to try to make your own Miso at home, especially if the primary reason you don't like it is because of the overwhelming salty nature of the dish. When homemade, you have the ability to control the sodium and your additional veggies or even meats if you prefer(I'll skip the tofu, please!) which can make a world of difference.

I found the recipe in one of my standard cook books that I use for almost everything and thought, what the heck! I'll give it a shot. I was inspired by my friend and co-worker Brianna who told me I should try to cook with seaweed, in response to my last post. It got me on the sushi/japanese kick. :) I'll make it to sushi soon!

I had to go to Lassens in Santa Maria to find the Udon Noodles and Miso but it was worth it. Here's the recipe, then I'll give some more tips at the end.

INGREDIENTS

6 oz udon noodles
5 cups reduced sodium veggie broth (if you dont want to do the math at the grocery store, or make your hubby do it like I did, I'll save you the time - it's just shy of 3 standard cans)
1/4 cup light miso
1/2 medium head bok choy, sliced (about 2 cups)
1 red bell pepper seeded and cut into strips
1/4 lb fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems discarded & caps thinly sliced
4 scallions, sliced
1/2 teaspoon rice or white wine vinegar (as I typed this I realized I LEFT OUT the vinegar - woops!)

DIRECTIONS

- Cook Noodles according to package directions; drain in a colander. Rinse the noodles under cold running water, drain and set aside.

- Meanwhile, whisk together the broth and miso in a large saucepan. Add the bok choy, bell pepper and mushrooms; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are just tender, about 7 minutes. Stir in reserved noodles, scallions and vinegar. Serve at once.

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Things I learned:

My cookbook had this helpful hint:

"Miso is a fermented soy paste which is found in the refrigerated section of Asian markets, natural-foods stores and some supermarkets. If you have a choice between light and dark miso, go for the light variety - it's milder and less salty."

I found a light yellow variety of Miso in the back fridge section of Lassens and I found Udon Noodles (the thicker kind) in Lassens also but in the sunroom space with the Asian foods. Prices weren't too bad, not too cheap but my whole recipe made a ton of soup - 5 cups of broth plus the noodles and veggies added lots of volume. Lots of left over and great for the next day @ lunch.

Also - play around with your ingredients! As long as you have the base of the Miso and broth - then add what you want. I ONLY did bok choy and scallions. The mushrooms were a bit pricey this week for me and I am not a fan of bell peppers. But you could add some meat, or some other veggies anything you like! It is not too salty at all, very mild and more of an actual flavor. Give it a try! You also dont have to do noodles if you aren't a fan of them.

P.S. You use so little of the miso I was wondering what to do with the rest before it goes bad. Well the lid has a salad dressing recipe! I'm definately going to try it. If you look close enough on the picture you can read it too, :) If you try this soup - let me know! What do you put in it?