It must be fall because I’m in soup mode: making huge batches of soups and freezing portions for quick and easy dinners to thaw on a cold winter night. This week I had a craving for seaweed: I couldn’t stop thinking about a seaweed soup.
Vegetables from the sea offer a huge nutritional payload: Vitamins A, C, E, and K; niacin, phosphorus, riboflavin, folate, calcium, iron, magnesium, copper and manganese, just for starters. Bio-available sodium makes seaweed a great choice for replenishing the body after a sweaty workout or when you have a fever.
Miso-based soups can be ready in minutes, making them a great, last-minute dinner idea. In Japan, miso, or fermented soybean paste, has long been thought to have healthful benefits. Miso is good for digestion and is full of zinc for fighting off colds and flu. Miso’s deep, savory flavor makes it a delicious and satisfying meal option. I like to keep a container of miso paste in the fridge to stir into hot water for instant soup anytime.
You should feel free to choose different seaweeds, different vegetables, and even different proteins (this could be a great chicken-miso-seaweed soup, after all!) – almost anything tastes great in a miso soup!
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Fortifying Seaweed Miso Soup
- 3 Tbsp. Wakame seaweed, dry
- 1/2 cup Arame seaweed, dry
- Carrots, cut into bite-size pieces
- Shitake mushrooms, sliced
- 1 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
- 1/4 cup Miso paste
- 1 package of Extra Firm tofu, drained, pressed, and cubed
- Sea salt
Soak dry seaweed in a bowl of warm water until softened (at least 10 minutes). Drain, rinse, and refill with clean water. Soak for another 5 minutes, then drain and rinse well. If using dried mushrooms, soak in warm water as well to rehydrate, then slice.
In the meantime, bring a pot of water to a boil and drop in the carrots. Add the mushrooms and zucchini. When the vegetables are tender, add the drained seaweed and stir in miso paste and sea salt to taste. Broth should be slightly cloudy. Drop in the tofu cubes and serve.
