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Homemade Miso Soup with Tofu Recipe

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4 from 15 reviews

This homemade miso soup recipe offers an authentic and flavorful Japanese favorite made from scratch, including kombu and katsuobushi dashi, silken tofu, wakame seaweed, and scallions. It’s nourishing, savory, and can be tailored to vegetarian or vegan diets by using kombu dashi alone. Perfect as a comforting starter or light meal, this traditional soup balances umami-rich broth with creamy tofu and fresh green onion garnish.

Ingredients

For the Dashi (Soup Stock)

  • 4 cups water
  • 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) (⅓ oz, 10 g per piece; 4 x 4 inches or 10 x 10 cm)
  • 1 cup katsuobushi (dried bonito flakes) (loosely packed approx. 3 cups for stronger flavor)

For the Soup

  • 7 oz soft/silken tofu (kinugoshi dofu), cut into ½-inch cubes
  • 4 Tbsp miso paste (approximately 1 Tbsp or 18 g per cup of dashi)
  • 1 Tbsp dried wakame seaweed
  • 1 green onion/scallion, thinly sliced into rounds

Instructions

  1. Prepare Ingredients: Gather all ingredients and slice the green onion into thin rounds. Cut the soft tofu into ½-inch cubes and set aside.
  2. Make Kombu Dashi: In a medium saucepan, add 4 cups water and 1 piece kombu. Soak kombu for 30 minutes if time allows. Slowly heat over medium-low heat and bring just before boiling (~10 minutes). Remove kombu just before boiling to prevent sliminess and bitterness. This creates Kombu Dashi, suitable for vegetarian or vegan bases.
  3. Add Katsuobushi for Awase Dashi: If not vegetarian/vegan, add 1 cup katsuobushi to the hot kombu dashi and bring to boil again. Simmer for 30 seconds, then turn off heat and let katsuobushi sink for 10 minutes. Strain the broth through a fine mesh sieve to yield about 4 cups Awase Dashi.
  4. Store or Use Dashi: Refrigerate dashi for up to 3–5 days or freeze for 2 weeks. Reserve spent kombu and katsuobushi for other recipes.
  5. Heat Dashi for Soup: Add dashi to a saucepan and slowly bring to about 96°C (205°F), just below boiling, then turn off heat.
  6. Dissolve Miso Paste: Place miso in a ladle, gradually add hot dashi into it, and stir with chopsticks or use a miso muddler to dissolve thoroughly. Use a fine mesh miso strainer for faster dissolving if available. Dilute with extra dashi or water if too salty.
  7. Add Tofu: Gently add tofu cubes after miso is fully dissolved to avoid breaking the delicate tofu. Use a cutting board to cut tofu if unfamiliar with palm cutting.
  8. Add Wakame and Green Onion: Add 1 Tbsp dried wakame and sliced green onions just before serving to preserve texture and aroma. Rehydrate wakame separately in water to control saltiness if desired.
  9. Serve: Serve immediately, ideally placed on the right side at the table setting for traditional presentation.
  10. Storage Tips: Consume soup immediately for best flavor. Cool to room temperature within 4 hours and refrigerate up to 2 days. For longer storage, keep dashi refrigerated or frozen without miso; add miso fresh when serving. Remove tofu before freezing to preserve texture.
  11. Reheating: Warm miso soup gently over medium heat without boiling to protect flavor and nutrients.
  12. Reuse Spent Ingredients: Keep spent kombu and katsuobushi in airtight containers refrigerated for up to a week or frozen for a month. Use in recipes like Simmered Kombu (Kombu Tsukudani) or Homemade Furikake Rice Seasoning.

Notes

  • Never boil miso soup after adding miso to preserve flavor and aroma.
  • Rehydrating wakame seaweed separately helps control saltiness.
  • Soft/silken tofu is delicate; handle gently to avoid breaking cubes.
  • Awase Dashi is traditional and contains fish-based ingredients; use Kombu Dashi alone for vegetarian or vegan diets.
  • Reserve and reuse spent kombu and katsuobushi for other flavorful dishes to avoid waste.
  • Refrigerate dashi broth separately and add miso just before serving for best preservation if making large batches.

Find it online: https://marthatasty.com/homemade-miso-soup-with-tofu-recipe/