Description
A collection of six comforting Japanese breakfast soups that bring warmth and simplicity to your morning routine.
Ingredients
- Kombu (dried kelp), small piece for dashi
- Bonito flakes (katsuobushi) or instant dashi granules
- Water, 6 to 8 cups depending on batch size
- White miso paste, 3 to 4 tablespoons
- Red miso paste, optional, 1 tablespoon
- Soft (silken) tofu, 1 small block
- Firm tofu, half block
- Wakame, dried, 1 tablespoon
- Scallions, thinly sliced, 3 to 4
- Eggs, 3 to 4
- Cooked white rice, 2 cups (for okayu or zosui)
- Ground pork or chicken, 8 ounces (for quick tonjiru-style soup)
- Thinly sliced carrots, 1 medium
- Daikon, thin half-moon slices, 1 cup
- Potato, small, cubed, 1
- Soy sauce, 1 to 2 teaspoons
- Mirin, 1 tablespoon
- Sesame oil, 1 teaspoon
- Mushrooms, shiitake or enoki, 1 cup
- Spinach or komatsuna, handful
- Pickled plums or furikake for garnish
- Cooked beef or pork leftover, small handful for topping
- Ground beef or leftover savory meat for a heartier morning bowl
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Make a simple dashi base by simmering water with kombu and bonito flakes or instant dashi granules, then strain.
- For miso soup with tofu and wakame, heat dashi, rehydrate wakame, stir in miso, and add tofu.
- For tamago-style egg soup, slowly drizzle beaten egg into simmering dashi shaped into ribbons.
- For okayu, combine cooked rice with dashi, simmer, season with soy sauce, and stir in an egg if desired.
- For tonjiru-inspired soup, sauté vegetables and meat in dashi, simmer until soft, and add miso and soy sauce.
- For clear mushroom and spinach soup, add mushrooms to dashi, simmer, and cook spinach until wilted.
- For a hearty bowl, warm leftover cooked meat in dashi, pour over rice, and top with an egg and furikake.
- Taste each soup before serving, and adjust seasoning as necessary. Serve bowls family-style with toppings.
Notes
Use what you have; the kombu and bonito provide most flavor. If you have cooked rice, you can prepare warm bowls in around ten minutes. Store leftovers properly; soups can keep for days in the fridge.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Boiling
- Cuisine: Japanese
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 300
- Sugar: 2g
- Sodium: 600mg
- Fat: 15g
- Saturated Fat: 5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 12g
- Cholesterol: 70mg