Spicy Vegan Vegetable Miso Soup
Spicy Vegan Vegetable Miso Soup with Udon Noodles
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Subtle heat transforms this vegan vegetable miso soup into a delightful treat that even carnivores will devour.
I hope you all had a great weekend celebrating St Patrick’s Day eating all of the corned beef & cabbage and bangers and mash. Today I have an accidental vegan recipe to share with you: spicy vegetable miso soup that even won the approval of my meat-eating husband — how’s that for a stamp of approval?!
The last month and a half, the California Central Coast has been getting soaked. Yes, rain is a good thing as we so desperately need it, but after a while the dark and gloomy weather gets a tad old. I’ve been so looking forward to indulging on fresh spring produce and enjoying the occasional opportunity to eat outside. Instead my backyard is a swamp and the produce I have been looking forward to doesn’t taste all that great… that’s the downside of too much rain.
So, too much rain and not enough sunshine equals less than perfect health and the need for comforting dinner recipes that don’t require a lot of energy that don’t sacrifice on taste. Which brings me to today’s recipe.
I don’t intentionally cook many vegan recipes. As I’ve mentioned before, I am incredibly sensitive to saturated fat and most vegan dairy substitutes for whatever reason often have high levels of saturated fat, which is a no-go for me. For this recipe, however, I intentionally swapped out my usual go to of shredded chicken for… tofu. But don’t get too excited: I added udon noodles, too.
This recipe is also really simple to make, especially if you do the bulk of the chopping and slicing while the udon noodles are cooking. Once the noodles are done, they are rinsed and divided amongst serving bowls. Then, the broth is cooked in the same saucepan.
Thinly sliced ginger and Thai chile is then simmered in sake before the miso and vegetable broth is whisked into the pan. If you want your soup to be spicier or milder, add more slices or subtract the thai chile entirely. If you’re planning to serve this soup to a table full of carnivores who act like they’re being poisoned if you try to feed them tofu the flavors of the chile mask the natural flavor of tofu. The soup is then finished off with thinly sliced carrots, mushrooms and green onions.
For a wine pairing, you can either pair this soup with a crisp, zesty white wine such as Verdehlo or Vermentino, or a light and fruity Pinot Noir such as Wente Riva Ranch.