Kinokojiru (miso-jitate) / assorted mushroom soup (miso flavor)

A variation on mushroom soup using assorted mushrooms. Sauteing mushrooms first in sesame oil brings out their mellow flavor together with a complex earthy note. White miso enhances the mellowness, and red miso adds a sharp bite.

<Ingredients>

300 cc dashi
Large handful (approx 150 g) assorted mushrooms (oyster, shiitake, chanterelle, enoki; 140 g in total in photo)
1 tbsp white and red miso (equal parts)
1 green onion (green section)
1 tsp sesame oil (for sauteing mushrooms; not in photo)


<Directions>
1.

Cut mushrooms into pieces 3cm long, and tear thick pieces lengthwise into skinnier sections.
Thinly slice green onion.

2.

In a pot, heat sesame oil, and saute mushrooms -- except for enoki -- on medium low heat.

3.

When mushrooms start to look moist (do not need to be cooked through), add dashi, raise heat, bring to boil, lower heat to medium low, and simmer until mushrooms are soft.

4.

Meanwhile, take some liquid from the pot and soften miso.

5.

Add enoki, and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes.

Turn off heat, and add miso.

6.

Serve in individual bowls, and garnish with green onion.

<Notes>

• Enoki cooks very fast, thus it is added toward the end.
• Sauteing mushrooms is optional. If not sauteing, bring dashi to boil, cook mushrooms other than enoki, and when other mushrooms are done add enoki.
• For an even richer taste, saute with butter. Sauteing with canola oil and adding a tiny bit of butter for aroma and taste also works.
• Use at least two kinds of mushrooms to get a complex flavor. Three or four kinds is ideal.
• Other than the mushrooms used above, maitake, shimeji, eringi and nameko are good choices.
• A recipe for a lighter version of kinokojiru (soy sauce flavor) is found here.