Test Kitchen - Miso Soup

Happy new year fellow foodies! It's been pretty cold this winter so far even for southern California (yes, we're wimps), so when my Test Kitchen ingredient for last week was seaweed, I decided to go a warmer route than attempting sushi. Don't worry - I'll tackle that one day! Anyhow, miso soup is a definite favorite among the people I'm close to so it made sense to give that a shot. Luckily for us, Costa Mesa has quite a few places that cater to any Japanese needs so I could find some fresh miso paste to use. I bought the kind that came with dashi stock infused already but if you're looking to make your own stock, I encourage you to try.

Step 1: Ingredients (yields 6-8 servings)

• 8 cups water
• 14 oz. soft tofu, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1 oz. dried wakame seaweed
• 6 tbsps miso paste
• green onions, sliced for topping

Step 2: Prepping the ingredients
Start a large pot on high heat with your water. While waiting for it to boil, prepare remaining ingredients. For tofu, make sure to press out excess water before cutting into blocks. This will allow it to absorb more of the soup. On a separate plate, slice up green onions for topping. For dried wakame, pour into a shallow bowl and add cold water until all pieces are covered. Let soak for 5 minutes - they will open up quickly.


Step 3: Finishing
Once water in the pot is boiling, add in wakame and tofu. Cook for 3 minutes before removing from heat. Add in miso paste and stir until dissolved. Put back on heat and cook until just before boiling - you typically would not boil miso soup as it destroys the cultures in the paste. Take off heat and serve. Top with green onion and enjoy!


This week's Test Kitchen ingredient: cauliflower
"Cauliflower is one of several vegetables in the species Brassica oleracea, in the family Brassicaceae. It is an annual plant that reproduces by seed. Typically, only the head (the white curd) is eaten. The cauliflower head is composed of a white inflorescence meristem. Cauliflower heads resemble those in broccoli, which differs in having flower buds. Its name is from Latin caulis (cabbage) and flower. Brassica oleracea also includes cabbage, brussels sprouts, kale, broccoli, and collard greens, though they are of different cultivar groups." [Wikipedia]

Can you believe I haven't really cooked with cauliflower before? I'm not counting the times when I've just steamed it to have with rice. I just mean in general! Anyhow, comment on Facebook on what I should do with it!


Photography by Duc Duong.