Instructions: Boil 4 cups of water and dashi. Add tofu and mushrooms, simmer gently about 3 minutes. Add miso and dissolve completely. Immediately turn off the heat and add chopped green onions, then serve.

This recipe yields 4 servings.

Comments: This soup is served every morning in Japan, with the flavors of seasonal vegetables. There are several different kinds of miso paste available in the United States. Shiro-miso paste is a mild one and is low in salt. On the other hand, aka-miso is very salty and has a different, stronger fragrance than shiro-miso. Miso soup base is made out of a fish stock called dashi. You can purchase dashi at any Oriental food shop. You can enjoy almost any vegetable with this soup, from lettuce to snow pea pods. Heres a list of vegetables you might want to try in the miso soup.

Types of gu and preparation suggestions

Chinese cabbage, cut into bite-size squares or triangles Cabbage, cut into bite-size squares or triangles Lettuce, cut into bite-size squares or triangles Green onions, sliced
Onions, sliced
Leeks, sliced or chopped
Okra, chopped
Butternut squash(*), thinly sliced
Snow pea pods
Green beans(*)

Daikon(*), thinly sliced
Potatoes(*), thinly sliced
Sweet potatoes(*), thinly sliced
Mushrooms, sliced
Bean sprouts
Tofu, cut into small cubes
Wakame seaweed
Natto beans, minced

Not recommended: green pepper, celery (vegetables with strong flavor)

The above recipe uses tofu, green onions, and mushrooms.

Note: You have to cook the hard vegetables(*) longer, ten minutes or so. If you have a combination of soft and hard vegetables, add the soft vegetables later. The miso flavor will weaken if you overcook the miso.

If you would like to email yourself the recipe for later use, or share the recipe with your friends or family, enter the email addresses below and this recipe will be emailed to you and others as well.