Miso Mushroom Tofu and Noodles Soup Recipe-

Ingredients:

(serves 8 or more, and saved leftovers taste even better reheated the next day)

• 14 oz. (400 grams) Somen noodles
• Sesame oil, regular, or (optional) hot sesame oil (for an even spicier soup)
• 2 cups of shitake mushrooms, stems trimmed of tough ends and fine chopped, heads chopped to ¼”thick slices
• 2 cups of oyster mushrooms, stems trimmed of tough ends, bodies chopped in half if larger than bite size
• 2 cups of enoki mushrooms, bottoms of stems cut off, stems and heads left together and whole
• 2 to 4 heaping tbsp. (depending on how spicy hot you want your soup) Sambal Oelek Red Chili Paste
• 1 pound (500 grams) medium or dark brown miso
• 8 green onions, white parts fine chopped, tender parts of green stalks cut into 1” to 1-1/2” lengths
• 12 oz. firm tofu, chopped into ½” to ¾” cubes
• 4 cups fresh bean sprouts
• 2 to 3 quarts water (depending on your desired intensity of flavor and thickness of ingredients for your soup)

Note: You can use either fresh or dried mushrooms, since this is a soup and the mushrooms will fully rehydrate during the cooking. But if using dried mushrooms, reduce the quantity by 1/2, as they will fill out and enlarge during cooking/rehydration.

Directions:

1. Place a large cooking pot on the burner, fill halfway with water, and bring the water to a rolling boil.
2. Spoon in the miso, until the entire 1 lb. package is in the water, and stir until it is all dissolved into the water.
3. Spoon in the red chili paste, and again stir until well blended throughout the soup.
4. Add the green onions and bean sprouts to the pot.
5. Wait until the water returns to a good boil, and then add in all the prepped mushrooms. This will again stop the water from boiling. Wait until it boils again, and then add the chopped tofu chunks into the mix.
6. Reduce the heat until the soup is just at a lively simmer. Cover the pot with a lid left slightly ajar, to allow the soup to breathe and evaporate slightly as it simmers.
7. Leave the soup on the burner to gently simmer for at least two hours.
8. After you are done cooking the soup, take a medium sized cooking pot, fill it half to two-thirds full of water, and heat water to a furious boil.
9. Once the water is boiling, put all 14 oz. of the somen noodles in the pot, and cook for about 3 to no more than 5 minutes, until nice and tender. These very thin and delicate noodles do not take long to cook. Drain the noodles in a sieve.
10. Take each serving bowl and place a few drops of the sesame oil in the bottom. Fill the bowls 1/3 to ½ full of noodles.
11. Finally, ladle the soup over the noodles, filling the bowls near to the top, and serve immediately. Provide chopsticks and a large soup spoon as eating utensils. Chopsticks for picking out morsels to eat and twisting up yummy helpings of the noodles, and a spoon for bringing the savory broth to the mouth. This is the traditional Korean way of eating Miso Mushroom Tofu and Noodles Soup.

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