A vegetarian miso soupor rather, 100% vegetal with the smoky note of tofu, the scent of shiitake mushrooms and the intense touch of braised black cabbage.
Miso soup is a typical dish of Japanese food which can be enriched in many different, seasonal and more or less vegetal ways. I chose a vegan variant to enhance them even more digestive and purifying properties of this recipe. A real detoxifying boost, which strengthens the immune system and promotes the health of the intestinal bacterial flora
The ingredients for a perfect miso soup
Miso
The miso* it is obtained from the fermentation of legumes (in particular yellow soy) and cereals (such as barley and rice). It is used to flavor soups and broths, but also to salt or season meat, fish and salad dishes.
It’s a kind of batter that it must strictly be added at the end of cooking and diluted for a maximum of one minute, before service. This operation allows its nutritional properties to remain unaltered and not to be lost with long cooking.
Wakame seaweed
L’wakame seaweed* it is a brown marine algae, endowed with remineralising, purifying and detoxifying properties, it is rich in calcium and magnesium, vitamin C and group B.
How to enrich your miso broth
Tofu
You can choose your favorite tofu, soft or hard, depending on your personal taste. I used a smoked tofucut into cubes, which I sautéed in a pan with a little sesame oil to give it a light crunchy texture, so as to add a chewable part to my miso soup.
Shiitake mushrooms
The lentinus edodesthe scientific name of shiitake, is a mushroom of Asian origin particularly widespread in China and Japan. Famous for its nutritional properties, it is rich in proteins thanks to the numerous amino acids and essentials it contains, together with substances that help control blood pressure and cholesterol levels, as well as strengthen the immune system.
You can find it fresh at certain times of the year (it is also grown in Italy) or dried*, as in my case. Just soak it for a few hours and add it to your preparation to enjoy all its benefits and its intense aroma.
Seasonal vegetables
For this miso soup I used the black cabbage, braised in a pan over low heat with just a drizzle of sesame oil, until tender. But you can add the seasonal vegetables you prefer, such as pumpkin or sweet potato, daikon, carrots, ginger, aubergine, courgette, cauliflower, turnip greens or onions.
Dashi broth
You can use normal vegetable broth, to keep this recipe 100% vegetable, but the best thing would be to use dashi broth.
It is a Japanese broth made with an infusion of kombu seaweed *(a dried brown seaweed used in this cuisine to flavor and soften foods) and the katsuobushi* (skipjack tuna dried, fermented, smoked and reduced into very thin flakes).
In this case, for 1 liter of dashi broth you will need 15 g of kombu seaweed and 15 g of katshoubushi. Alternatively you can purchase the freeze-dried dashi broth here*.