Description

This hearty, mushroom-flavored miso soup is comfort in a bowl. I like to bring it to anyone who needs a pick-me-up. Living in Maine, I love to incorporate seaweed into my recipes. This one uses two kinds of sea vegetables: kombu and wakame. Kombu, a type of kelp that generally comes in the form of large, thick, dried leaves, is high in B vitamins and calcium, and contains a natural flavor enhancer, glutamic acid, which makes it ideal for flavoring broths like this one. The second type of seaweed used here is alaria, also known as wakame, which usually comes dehydrated and is a great source of iron, calcium, fiber, potassium, and vitamins A and B6. Once reconstituted, it will give your dishes a beautiful green color and a delightfully chewy texture.

Ingredients

Scale

For the broth:

1/2 ounce dried kombu seaweed pieces
1/2 ounce (about 1/2 cup) katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes)

For the soup:

1 ounce (about 1 cup) dried sliced shiitake mushrooms
1/2 ounce (about 1/2 cup) dried alaria (wakame) seaweed, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup mirin
1/4 cup sweet white miso paste
4 ounces enoki mushrooms, ends trimmed
1/2 pound firm tofu, drained well and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions

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Instructions

Combine the kombu and 4 cups water in a small saucepan. Bring just to a simmer over medium heat, about 6 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the bonito, cover, and steep to let the flavors develop about 12 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine the shiitake mushrooms, wakame, soy sauce, mirin, and 2 cups water, and bring just to a simmer over medium heat, about 6 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to simmer until the shiitakes are reconstituted and tender, about 4 more minutes. Turn off the heat.
Pour the kombu mixture through a fine-mesh strainer over the mushrooms in the saucepan. Discard the strained kombu and bonito.
With heat off, stir the miso paste into the soup until smooth, then gently stir in the enoki mushrooms, tofu, and scallions. Bring the soup back up to a simmer over medium heat and continue to simmer until the mushrooms and tofu are warmed through, about 4 minutes. Serve immediately or within a few days.