Miso Ramen

We've been learning a lot about Japan recently. We've got books, we've got a toddler language learning DVD, and we've got Japan Prime on Amazon, where we've been drooling over Japanese food and learning all about ramen and what makes Japanese food so good, especially in Japan (the fish, the food chain, etc.). 

This week I decided to try my hand at making some miso ramen. My go-to vegetarian cookbook has a miso recipe, and I was surprised to learn that miso soup is one of the most instant soups you can make because miso itself is a paste that you mix some water into. I had previously imagined it was a stock that you had to slave over for hours. 

My vegetarian cookbook. I grew up loving the spinach quiche in here more than hamburgers. The miso soup recipe that this soup is based on is on p. 9. 

I was also pleasantly surprised that my local grocery store carried miso paste! They didn't have seaweed, but they did have miso, and some Japanese Ramen called Ichiban. 

The stakes were pretty high today for this soup because on Monday I made a terrible potato soup with some leftover roasted potatoes and beets. As my grandma would say, it was a disaster. 

The miso ramen turned out so well, and it only took about 15 minutes from start to finish. AND, both of my kids ate it. They didn't have the broth, just the other ingredients on a plate. Try it out and let me know what you think!

Miso Ramen 

Serves 1 adult, 1 toddler, 1 baby : ) 

Ingredients 

• 4-7 mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 3 Tbs. miso paste 
• 1 pack Ichiban noodles (discard seasoning) 
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2-3.5 oz. tofu cut into small cubes
• handful of baby spinach 

Directions 

1. Boil 4 cups of water 
2. Add mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes 
3. While the mushrooms are cooking, prepare the miso paste. Measure three tablespoons of miso paste into a large serving bowl and whisk in 3/4 cup boiling water from the pot-- this forms the base of the soup. Whisk until there are no clumps. 
4. Add noodles to pot and cook for three minutes 
5. In the last minute of cooking, add in the green onions, tofu and spinach 
6. Pour contents of pan into large serving bowl and mix together 
7. Serve and enjoy!