Salty, savory miso soup, fragrant with scallions, and poured over a bowl of rice and a poached egg. This, for me, is comfort food at its finest. Here's how to make this simple supper tonight. You only need a few staples — perhaps you have them all already?
My husband and I both crave miso soup on winter nights. We had a semi-tradition last year of Miso Mondays — eating miso soup after the indulgences of the weekend. But a bowl of miso soup alone doesn't do for dinner, so we've taken to eating it with a bit of rice and a poached egg. So simple, and so easy. A little protein, a little rice, and a bowl of hot soup to cup on a winter's night.
We've given you recipes in the past for dashi soup stock and miso soup. This recipe puts them all together, and it will make enough for about eight bowls of miso soup — plenty for two, with lunch leftovers. A note: If you're saving some for lunch the next day, leave out the tofu and scallions for that portion. Warm them in the soup at the last minute.
And don't forget — this makes a splendid breakfast too!
Miso Soup with Rice & Poached Egg
makes 8 servings of soup
Dashi
2 quarts water
One 3-inch square kombu (sea kelp)
3/4 cup bonito flakes
Miso Soup
2 quarts dashi
1/2 cup miso paste
One 12-ounce block silken tofu, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
1 small bunch scallions, green tops sliced thin
For each bowl of soup
1 cup cooked white rice (see how to how to cook brown rice)
1 large egg
Soy sauce
Chili garlic sauce
Sesame oil
To make the dashi
Pour 2 quarts of water in a large saucepan. Have a separate 2-quart bowl ready to the side with a fine mesh strainer or piece of cheesecloth.
Place the kombu in the cold water. Turn the heat to high, and heat just to boiling. Turn off the heat and remove the kombu. Stir in the bonito flakes and steep for 5 minutes. Strain into the prepared bowl. Pour the strained liquid back into the pot.
To make the miso soup
Bring the strained dashi to boiling. Ready the miso paste in a measuring cup or small bowl. After the broth has boiled, pour 1 cup hot broth into with the prepared bowl with the miso. Whisk until smooth and completely combined. Pour the miso and broth back into the pot and turn the heat to low. Whisk the miso until it is incorporated into the broth completely. Keep over low heat; do not let the broth boil after the miso has been added.
Stir in the tofu cubes and the sliced scallions, and heat just until warmed through.
To prepare a bowl of soup
Place 1 cup cooked white rice in each soup bowl. Poach an egg for each bowl of soup. You can see how to poach an egg here. You can also poach an egg quickly in the microwave. (Alternatively, you can add an egg to a bowl of hot broth, cover it, and let stand for several minutes. I find that poaching the eggs separately on the stovetop is a little easier when serving more than one person.)
Pour about 1 cup of miso soup over the rice in each bowl, and place a poached egg on top. Serve with soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, and sesame oil.
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yummy. good tips to dissolve miso before adding to the pot.
Is there a way to make this soy-free without compromising the flavor?
My roommate had breast cancer and her doctor told her to avoid soy because there was a lot of debate about whether it helped or hindered the healing process, or something along those lines? Basically she doesn't eat soy.
I can make it with soy, but she won't eat it, which is a shame cause it sounds incredibly tasty.
Wow! I wasn't expecting anything I'd really want to take from 'Soup Week'. ...this totally caught me off guard!
I love soup, but I've been in the mood for simple and nourishing - this is totally it. Thanks ;)
I think it would be fine to eliminate the miso - it'd be "osumashi," instead of "omisoshiru" (miso soup). Make sure you make a good-quality broth, and you also may want to add a few more ingredients to make things interesting - some wilted spinach, or maybe a little bit of shredded chicken, or some mushrooms.
My mother used to sometimes take leftover miso soup from the night before, put a little bit of rice in it, warm it up over the stove and crack an egg in it - cook it covered for just a couple of minutes, and you get a warm, eggy, porridge-y dish. It used to be my favourite breakfast, and it takes care of just that last bit of miso soup that's not quite enough for a bowl full. Same idea, but slightly different incarnation. (Then it's called ojiya.)
yum... looks delicious! Do you know if I can get the kombu, miso paste, and bonito flakes in grocery stores or do I have to go to a specialty store?
@katie: Eden Foods makes organic miso pastes (in four strengths), bonito, and kombu, and they're all available nationwide, or directly from Eden, or even from Amazon.com if you're willing to buy multiple packs at once. I absolutely love Eden products and keep the shiro miso (the lowest in sodium, since my diet is restriction) on hand for things like this when possible.
What a lovely looking soup! I will definitely be making it this week. After a week of feeling under the weather I think this might be just the comfort food I'm looking for.
@mdeatherage - thanks for the information!
I love this soup, it's so comforting and nice for a healthy breakfast start. I make this for my kids sometimes for breakfast, and have served it with a hard boiled egg. I like brown rice as a for a healthier, heartier soup.
This is what the Japanese call "neko manma" which means cat food. It's the kind of soup concoction college boys are famous for. I think it's delish, but my mother in law actually tried to block my view of my future husband eating something like this. (Which is why it's nice to live half a world away!)
@KaityB - Regarding the soy issue, I think that the issue with soy (contains compounds similar to estrogen) would only pertain to the tofu. Fermented soy products (i.e. Miso) seem to be in the clear. FWIW
Thanks for the idea! We had a couple of my boyfriend's friend's over tonight for dinner and I wanted something cheap and fairly simple. These are pretty much the only two friends of his that I really dislike and don't feel welcoming towards when they come into our home and spending the money for a fancy meal was NOT on my agenda. But I don't want to eat bad food either! So this was a perfect compromise! I used nappa cabbage, mushrooms, and broccoli instead of tofu (ours had gone bad) and I was all out of kombu. But it was delicious regardless and I didn't feel like I was spending the money on people who don't bother to say more to me than a passing "Hey" when they come to visit our house.
This would be good for a quick snack. Personally, I'd add more protein, maybe some seafood to make it more substantial. (I know it's not very healthy, but I sometimes eat just 1 meal a day)
lmao @FlyLittleBird! Tell the friends you don't like to order pizza!!! and to pay for it!!
After drooling over this post for a week, I finally made this miso soup, rice and egg dish last night for dinner. So delish. And so easy. And there was enough left over for a hearty breakfast. Yummmm.
I loved, loved, loved this! I pretend that the Chinese invented miso soup instead of the Japanese and do an infusion of ginger and garlic instead of the fishy stuff. I think this needs some greens so will make it again with a handful of Chinese broccoli stirred in. The poached egg is an inspired idea.
Mmmm! Just made this tonight. Sooooo good. My Hubby liked it too. Thanks for the recipe. We'll be using this one again.
This is an excellent recipe.
Thank you so much for sharing!
If you like having miso soup for dinner (and nothing else), you should look into tonjiru (sometimes called tanuki jiru).
It's basically miso soup with a bunch of veggies, tofu, konyaku, and some thin-sliced pork (used to be tanuki/badger) in it. Just add a dash of soy sauce once it's done cooking. Really simple, and still achieves that comfort food feeling you describe here.
my son whose is five (and whose favorite food is miso soup!) and I loved this recipe, thank you.
I thought that this would be delicious, and I was right! I really enjoyed this soup. I was able to make it according to the directions once I located the bonito flakes (couldn't find them in any regular supermarkets nor even a health food store, but Fairway market had them!).
I intend to make this as soon as I get the cooked rice. I love soups that have tofu in them. My favorite is the Kopan Monastery Soup.
I can't wait to make this for lunch tomorrow!!
Definitely tasty! Before I poached the eggs, I quickly cooked some tiny cremini mushrooms and broccoli and added the vegetables to the soup as well. I'll probably use a lighter miso next time, but there will certainly be a next time!
Love this recipe! I did my own version with veggies: http://saturdayswithmaggy.blogspot.com/2012/01/detox-food-hearty-miso-soup.html
Thanks for the inspiration!
I'm really excited to make this, but can I freeze the leftover dashi? Does it freeze well or will it become gelatinous when it is thawed?
Sounds like a great use for the leftover white rice that seems to accumulate at my house after having Chinese food with our friends on Friday nights. I always have miso on hand, and though I also have the kombu and bonito on hand, I will probably cheat and use instant hondashi granules.
@new cook- I think you should be fine with frozen dashi!
awesome! i love miso soup - it's so comforting!!
This reminds me of a breakfast my dad would make. He'd use a ramen packet, add in any leftover meat and veggies we had from previous dinners, some more flavorings, and then top it with a poached egg (poached in the broth). Delicious.