Easy Homemade Miso Soup Recipe

Miso soup is a traditional Japanese soup, made of a fish stock called “dashi” and softened miso paste.

This simple soup is filling and satisfying due to its high protein content and versatile to customize it to everyone’s taste and what you have on hand.

There’re endless variations of miso soup, including one of my all-time favorite clam miso soup.

• Dashi (or broth) – Traditionally, miso soup is made of dashi/fish stock, but you can use simple chicken stock, or vegetable stock.
• Miso paste – It’s an essential ingredient. More on it below.
• Optional add-ins – You can add anything to your miso soup. Common add-ins are cubed silken tofu and wakame (seaweed), green onions, sesame oil, etc.

So, what is dashi?

• Dashi is a simple fish broth with complex flavors from simmered kelp (seaweed) and bonito flakes (smoky dried fish flakes). It’s a base to many Japanese dishes, including miso soup.

While it’s super easy to make dashi at home, I often cheat and use these dashi granules. It’s, basically, the equivalent of chicken bouillon.

How to make miso soup:

To make an easy miso soup:

1. Bring dashi (or stock) to a boil.
2. Pour a small amount of hot stock into a cup and stir in miso paste until dissolved.
3. Then reduce heat and add the miso paste mixture.
4. Stir in desired add-ins and serve once heated through.

Add-in ideas:

As mentioned above, Japanese miso soup can be prepared in several different ways. Besides tofu, here’re other options to enrich your soup:

• dried seaweed for soups
• shredded napa cabbage
• mushrooms
• shredded carrots
• daikon
• hard-boiled eggs

Serving Ideas:

• Serve a bowl of miso with seared ahi tuna, baked salmon or homemade sushi rolls.
• It also makes a healthy power breakfast with a side of hard-boiled egg and steamed rice.
• Make a hearty miso soup with tofu, clams and veggies for a nourishing lunch.