Miso Soup

The other day it was a bit chilly here in Portland and I wanted something warm and yummy for dinner. That thought led me to the kitchen, I opened the cupboard and then shut it thinking I hope there is something in the fridge to eat because there is nothing here, well I was welcomed by a very empty refrigerator, but low and behold there was my miso paste! Whenever I’m at the Asian market I pick up a container of miso paste, it keeps forever, it makes delicious soup, and it’s really inexpensive. After my amazing find in the back corner of my fridge, I once again scoured the cupboard to see what I could doctor up the soup with and I just happened to have a few dried shitake mushrooms, a handful of rice noodles and a package of dried seaweed, hurray, dinner was officially started. This is such an easy soup to make, and you can really add anything you like or just add a bit of miso paste to water and have a very simple, but yummy meal.

Miso Soup

4 Cups Water
½ Cup Miso Paste
Handful Rice noodles
6 Dried Shitake Mushrooms
Dried Seaweed (a little goes a long ways!)
Anything else you like…scallions, tofu, shrimp…

Soak the rice noodles in hot water for a few minutes to soften, drain and rinse with cold water, keep in water so they don’t stick together. Soak the dried mushrooms in a bowl with hot water until reconstituted, about 5 minutes, drain, remove stems, and cut into thin slices.
Bring the water to a boil, turn off heat and then add miso paste and stir until completely dissolved, add all other ingredients and stir again to incorporate them into the soup. Place into 4 small bowls, for a starter, or a large bowl for dinner.
I also love to add a little siracha, and rice vinegar to my soup, but that’s just me…so do what you like!