Miso soup
Miso soup is the most famous amongst Chinese soups. It is available in all Chinese restaurants served as first course of any meal. It is popular due to its silken texture and light broth. The miso soup is very nutritious, healthy and light. The Miso soup can be made in many different ways. The most common among them being the one made with dashi stock as base. A good dashi stock is the channel to make perfect miso soup. Here is a recipe which you can try in your own kitchen. It is easy and fast to make and will for sure become one of your favorites after you try it.
Complexity level: easy
Estimated time: 3o minutes
Resources required:
1. 2 to 3 tablespoon of miso paste
2. 3 ounces of dried soba noodles
3. Dashi soup stock
4. 6 stems of spinach
5. Green onions
6. Cilantro
7. Red pepper flakes
Instructions:
Cooking soba noodles:
Boil 4 to 5 cups of water in a wide mouth pan and add 2 pinches of salt to it. Put 3 ounces of dried soba noodles into the boiling water. Once it is cooked drain the hot water out and put some cold water to stop the noodles from cooking any further. Drain out the water again. You can also use a wide mouthed strainer to throw out the extra water. Put the strainer under cold running water to stop the noddles from cooking any further. Set aside the boiled noodles.
Making soup stock and addition of tofu:
In a sauce pan pour 4 cups of water and add dashi soup stock and allow it to boil. Now add tofu (chopped into 1/3-inch cubes) to the pan, simmer it for 5 minutes and then remove from heat.
Whisking miso paste:
Take a small bowl and put miso paste in it. Take out some soup stock with the help of a ladle and pour it into the bowl. Whisk the paste with the soup stock till it becomes thin and then add it gradually back to the sauce pan. You should continuously stir the soup for smooth silky texture. Now when it is mixed properly remove from heat and let it cool for few minutes.
Seasoning:
Chop the top of the green onion and thinly slice it. Wash the spinach thoroughly, trim the stems and chop the leaves into small pieces. Now add both sliced green onions and chopped spinach into the soup. Add red pepper flakes and cilantro into the soup.
Serving
Divide the soba noddles into three bowls equally and pour the miso soup over it before serving.
