Miso Soup with Aubergine

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Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Energy level per serving: unknown
Saturated fat level per serving: unknown
Carbohydrates level per serving: unknown
Gi level per serving: unknown

Number of servings: 2
This recipe has been visited 3130 times

Ingredients:

Metric Imperial

70 gm(s) aubergine

70 gm(s) komatsuna or spinach

400 ml(s) dashi stock or fish stock

2 tbsp(s) awase miso paste

chilli powder or shichimi togarashi - to taste

by Harumi Kurihara. In Japan, this delicious soup is popular in Autumn when komatsuna is at its best.

Posted by: Sarah Scott on 03 August 2008

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Cooking Steps:

Cut the aubergine into 1.5cm thick bite-sized pieces and soak in cold water for about 5 minutes then boil to remove any bitterness.
When it has just softened, drain and soak in cold water until cool. Drain again.
Cut the komatsuna into 2cm pieces.
Warm the dashi stock in a small pan, add the miso paste and stir until dissolved. Add the aubergine and komatsuna, simmer briefly and serve sprinkled with chilli powder or shichimi togarashi.

Ingredients note: Miso is a paste made from fermented soy beans and rice or barley. As it is considered to be so good for you, it can be found outside Japan in many health food shops. There are 3 basic types of miso: red (aka miso), which is dark and high in salt; white (shiro miso), which is paler and tends to be sweet, and mixed miso (awase miso) which is best for this classic soup. Mix the miso to a thin paste with a little of the hot stock before adding to the soup. Miso has a delicate aroma that is destroyed by boiling, so be careful not to boil the soup after adding the miso.

Instant dashi stock: if you are in a hurry or you cannot find the dried fish flakes (katsuo bushi), instant dashi stock is a good substitute).

Harumi's Hint: you can use a sppon to eat miso soup, but the traditional Japanese method is to drink the soup directly from the bowl, using chopsticks for the chunks.