Miso soup is a traditional Japanese dish that can be easily made at home. To make miso soup from scratch, you will need water, miso paste, tofu, green onion, nori seaweed, and optional toppings like mushrooms or spinach. Start by preparing the ingredients and boiling water. Turn off the heat and let it cool for a minute before adding miso paste to dissolve it completely. Pour the mixture back into the pot and add your choice of toppings. Heat up the soup again without boiling it, then add cubed tofu and chopped green onion. Sprinkle nori strips on top just before serving. Enjoy your homemade miso soup!

How to Make Miso Soup from Scratch

Miso soup is a traditional Japanese dish that is both simple and delicious. Here's how you can make it from scratch:

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of water
• 2 tablespoons of miso paste
• 1 block of tofu, cut into small cubes
• 1 green onion, finely chopped
• 1 sheet of nori seaweed, cut into thin strips
• Soup toppings (optional): mushrooms, spinach, wakame seaweed, or cooked chicken

Steps:

Step 1: Preparation

First, prepare all the ingredients. Cut the tofu into small cubes and finely chop the green onion. If you are using any additional soup toppings, prepare them as well. For example, if you are using mushrooms, slice them; if you are using spinach, wash and chop it; if you are using wakame seaweed, soak it in water until it expands and then cut it into small pieces.

Step 2: Boiling Water

In a pot, bring 4 cups of water to a boil. While the water is heating up, you can start preparing the miso paste.

Step 3: Miso Paste

In a small bowl, add 2 tablespoons of miso paste. When the water is boiling, turn off the heat and let it cool down for a minute or two. Then, scoop out about a cup of the hot water and add it to the bowl with the miso paste. Use a spoon to stir the miso paste and hot water together until the miso dissolves completely. This step helps prevent the miso from clumping when added to the soup.

Step 4: Adding Miso and Toppings

Pour the miso mixture back into the pot with the remaining hot water. Add your choice of soup toppings to the pot. If you are using spinach or other leafy greens, add them at this point as they only need a short time to cook. Stir gently to combine everything.

Step 5: Heating Up Again

Turn the heat on low and let the soup heat up again, but do not let it boil. Boiling can destroy the beneficial enzymes in miso and also cause the miso to separate from the soup, making it cloudy. Once the soup is heated through, turn off the heat.

Step 6: Final Touches

Add the cubed tofu and finely chopped green onion to the pot. The residual heat will warm up these ingredients without overcooking them. Sprinkle the nori strips on top of the soup just before serving.

Step 7: Serving

Ladle the miso soup into bowls and serve immediately. Enjoy your homemade miso soup!

Remember, miso soup is very versatile and you can customize it with various toppings to suit your taste. Always add delicate ingredients like leafy greens towards the end of cooking to avoid overcooking them.