Description
Looking for a comforting and flavorful dish? Discover the secret to making delicious Japanese Clear Soup at home!
Ingredients
Scale
- 8 cups (1.9 liters) water
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine)
- 3 tablespoons (45ml) soy sauce (preferably low-sodium)
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) sake (Japanese rice wine)
- 2 (4-inch/10cm) pieces dried kombu (kelp)
- 1/2 ounce (14g) bonito flakes (katsuobushi)
- 1 small onion (about 4 ounces/115g), thinly sliced
- 2 medium carrots (about 4 ounces/115g), peeled and julienned
- 4 shiitake mushrooms (about 2 ounces/57g), stems removed and caps thinly sliced
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal (for garnish)
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Step 1: Prepare the Dashi Base Begin by preparing your dashi base. Place water in a large pot and add the kombu. Let it soak for 30 minutes at room temperature to extract the umami flavors. Heat the pot over medium-low heat. Just before the water begins to boil (you’ll notice small bubbles forming around the kombu), remove the kombu pieces. Bringing kombu to a full boil can create bitterness.
- Step 2: Create the Dashi Add the bonito flakes to the pot and bring to a gentle boil. Immediately turn off the heat and let the bonito flakes sink to the bottom, about 2 minutes. Strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth into another clean pot, pressing gently on the solids. This creates your dashi base, the foundation of your Japanese Clear Soup.
- Step 3: Simmer the Vegetables Return the strained dashi to medium heat and add the mirin, soy sauce, and sake. Bring to a gentle simmer. Add the sliced onions and julienned carrots, maintaining the gentle simmer for about 10 minutes until vegetables begin to soften but retain some texture.
- Step 4: Add the Mushrooms Add the sliced shiitake mushrooms and continue to simmer for another 5 minutes. The mushrooms will add depth and earthiness to your Japanese Clear Soup while maintaining its clear appearance. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and white pepper if needed.
- Step 5: Finish and Serve Carefully strain the soup once more if you want the traditional completely clear broth, or leave the vegetables in for a more substantial soup. Ladle the hot soup into bowls and garnish with sliced green onions just before serving for a fresh, bright finish.
Notes
Fresh ingredients will always yield the best flavor results.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 300
- Sugar: 5g
- Sodium: 400mg
- Fat: 10g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 40g
- Fiber: 5g
- Protein: 15g
- Cholesterol: 50mg