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Miso soup

（misoshiru: 味噌汁）

For centuries the typical breakfast for Japanese people was rice and miso soup and waking up to the aroma of miso soup was a quintessential part of Japanese family life. Even today, for many Japanese, the word miso calls to mind images of good old-fashioned home cooking. Although in recent years it has become less common to see miso soup on the breakfast table as Japanese tastes become more Westernized, miso soup still remains an integral part of the Japanese diet.

Miso soup is surprisingly easy to cook. All you need is miso, dashi (soup stock ), and a few ingredients such as tofu (bean curd), seaweed or vegetables. A typical brew of miso soup may include such ingredients as tofu, wakame (seaweed), and abura-age (fried bean curd) - but seasonal vegetables, seafood and meat also work very well. Indeed, given the versatility of miso as a base flavor, by mixing and matching ingredients, one may cook a diferent kind of miso soup for every day of the year.

1. Add 2 cups of water to a pot and bring to the boil. Add the dashi stock (Use instant dashi stock for added convenience. Follow the product instructions regarding the appropriate amount to add. )
2. Bring to a low simmer. Add the miso. Do this by putting it in a strainer and dipping it into the stock while stirring so that it disolves easily.
3. Slice the tofu into 2/3 inch cubes and slide them into the soup, and heat slowly until it begins to simmer again (about 2 minutes). Once the tofu heats up, the soup is almost ready.
4. Add the chopped negi and simmer for about 20 seconds.
5. Serve in a small bowl.

About dashi
Dashi is an essential ingredient for making miso soup. Typical dashi is made from konbu (昆布：dried kelp) and kezuribushi (shaved bonito flakes) or niboshi (煮干し：dried sardines), although the exact ingredients vary from region to region. Recently, the number of homes using simple instant dashi has been growing. Dashi can be substituted for bouillon, but in such cases, adjust the amount of miso to maintain the correct degree of saltiness.