Miso Happy!
dinnertonight:
Miso Soup
Miso is an ancient Japanese food, a thick paste high in protein, minerals and vitamins. Miso is used in vegetarian cooking in place of meat-based stock, and some miso types are gluten-free. Like yogurt and kefir, miso contains live cultures that many (including me) believe are health-giving. For this reason, add miso paste at the very end of cooking, after the heat is turned off. Boiling miso destroys its benefits.
Sip one spoonful of this fresh soup and you’ll never eat dusty, disreputable, instant ramen again. This recipe makes one meal-sized bowl of soup.
Here’s What You Need:
• Olive oil: splash for the pot
• Scallions: two or three chopped
• Garlic: one large clove (or more), chopped
• Fresh ginger: thumbnail sized piece, chopped
• Red pepper flakes: small pinch to taste
• Radishes: 2 or 3, cut into chunks
• Fresh mushrooms: very small handful, cut into bite sized pieces
• Fresh greens: arugula, kale, tatsoi, and/or kale, cut into
slivers for quick cooking
• Pasta: fresh or dried, spaghetti or linguini broken into small pieces, or pastini.
• Sprouts: very small handful
(See upcoming “Gardening Gusto” on how to grow your own.)
• Egg: one fresh, raw, cracked into cup and stirred to mix yolk and white
• Optional ingredients: horseradish; seaweed (cut into small pieces); sesame
seeds; freshly squeezed lemon juice (about ½ teaspoon); sesame oil
(a few drops), tofu (cut into tiny cubes); sambal oelek, sriracha
(PCNR, “Gardening Gusto”, Feb 16, 2011) or whatever hot sauce you prefer.
First Do This:
1. To gauge proportions, choose your soup bowl first. This is a meal in a bowl, so don’t be shy.
2. In a small-ish saucepan on low heat, splash olive oil and gently sauté scallions, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes. Do not overcook.
3. Add radishes, mushrooms and greens and sauté briefly.
Then Do This:
4. Using your bowl to measure, add water to the vegetables in the saucepan and simmer slowly. Do not overcook.
5. Add two tablespoons of pasta to the pot and cook until al dente.
6. When pasta is cooked, turn off heat. Throw in sprouts, stir, and pour raw egg into soup. Gently stir egg until it is cooked.
Next Do This:
7. Place a tablespoon of miso paste into bowl. Add hot broth from the saucepan and stir to loosen paste.
8. Pour rest of contents into bowl and stir. The miso will activate and send small clouds moving around the bowl. Amazing!
Finally:
9. Add whatever optional ingredients you like, stir gently, and eat immediately.
More from Katherine's Recipe Box:
My Excellent Egg Salad Sandwich with Sprouts
Really Great Oatmeal
CoCo Lips
