apples / miso soup

[astroglide]

the organic fujis at whole foods were looking pretty rugged tonight, so i picked up jonagolds and a couple pinovas instead. jonagolds have been discussed here already, they're very good. pinovas are new to me. bright "sweet and slightly tart" flavor. when you crack into one it's sweet, but it has almost a slight pink lemonade kind of finish to it. not a staple apple, but i really enjoy having one every now and then (eating one right now). recommended.

i tried some "just add water" miso soup packet and it is possibly the most rancid thing i've ever had in my life. the packets were green and white i think. i haven't opened the white one. it's esward & sons "miso-cup", avoid it at all [censored] costs. i picked up a fantastic brand miso with tofu big soup noodle bowl, haven't tried it yet but i don't really want something with noodles/filling, just a taste of miso.

i just want your typical 'free with lunch' sushi joint kind of miso soup. i've got a hot water dispenser and i would love to be able to use it for this sort of thing. can anybody suggest a 'just add water' miso soup thing? i wouldn't mind looking at an asian grocer if there's some really good stuff there. any other light food i could pick up at one if i'm going to make that trip for the first time?

[wildzer0]

I've had that green and white stuff you're talking about. [censored] horrible! There's definitely better stuff at the asian grocer. I recommend picking up the soup without the tofu in it already because it never tastes quite right after it's freeze dried. just get some fresh tofu there and add it yourself. I forget what it's called, but there's a really great spicy miso soup a lot of asian grocer sell that comes in a big red and yellow pack.

//not asian
///just like miso soup

[Blarg]

I've had that kind of miso soup. P.S. I am completely crazy for good miso soup. I could consume gigantic quantities of it every day, the good stuff. It's the nectar of the gods. So I'm with ya on wanting to find it.

I can't recommend a brand because the brand I tried was sweet. I like a strong, non-sweet miso. I got the normal flavor, and the other flavors were more complicated than the simple miso I wanted.

So no recommendations here, but if someone else chimes in, I would love a good recommendation, too.

[astroglide]

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I've had that green and white stuff you're talking about. [censored] horrible!

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i mean honest to god, that [censored] haunts my dreams. i have 2 such food experiences in my life. one was a pack of horribly freezerburned hot dogs that i ate when i was like 7 years old, just thinking about it conjures up the awful taste in my mouth. the same is possible with this soup. it is [censored] abominable.

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I recommend picking up the soup without the tofu in it already because it never tastes quite right after it's freeze dried. just get some fresh tofu there and add it yourself.

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i'm far too lazy to do that. i basically want cup-a-soup miso, no adventures in tofu just yet. i haven't bought packs of it, but it seems like once you open a pack you're [censored] in terms of storage. tupperware? i have no idea. does it need to stay in some kind of liquid still? rhetoric questions here, just saying that's too much work for me at this stage.

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I forget what it's called, but there's a really great spicy miso soup a lot of asian grocer sell that comes in a big red and yellow pack.

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good info. still somewhat scared/disinterested in finding and dealing with an asian grocer but i should get over it.

[astroglide]

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I can't recommend a brand because the brand I tried was sweet. I like a strong, non-sweet miso. I got the normal flavor, and the other flavors were more complicated than the simple miso I wanted.

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yeah i want it to be like a miso broth kind of thing, not a confection. i have seen some huge variance in what people consider miso soup. going from my favorite local sushi place to the rancid packets to this soapy tasting crap at a japanese steakhouse.

[tonypaladino]

I used to get some sort of add water one from a japanese grocery store, but i can't remember the name. If i were you i'd hit up an asian grocer and buy a few different brands. They're not expensive.

[Blarg]

I'd buy the tofu and miso separately. Miso is a bit of a refined, complex flavor for something like a cup o' soup. Even you buy the miso and tofu separately, there's still almost the same amount of work to it -- heat water and add vs. heat the tofu in the water, and add. If you can boil water, you're set.

Tuperware is fine for tofu. Keep it in water after you open it, and change the water every few days. It lasts a good while. Unopened, it lasts months. It's really low maintenance stuff.

My family used to own some quality Japanese restaurants, so I'm very spoiled when it comes to Japanese food. I hope I find a good brand name suggestion here in OOT, too, because good miso is incredible stuff.

[astroglide]

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Miso is a bit of a refined, complex flavor for something like a cup o' soup.

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i like it better, but i don't see how the flavor is more complex/refined than chicken or beef broth or that it would be so difficult to dehydrate.

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Tuperware is fine for tofu. Keep it in water after you open it, and change the water every few days. It lasts a good while. Unopened, it lasts months. It's really low maintenance stuff.

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i'd rather just have it straight than mess with miso for now. changing water and dealing with tupperware is not my cup of tea, i'm terrible about leftovers in general.

[Blarg]

I think it's more delicate, and chicken broth or beef broth can be pretty one-note. That's especially the case in dehydrated products, which tend to be incredibly cheap and have their flavor highly bolstered with salt. They tend to just be pretty lousy, really. Good miso soup has a sort of refreshing clarity to it that doesn't seem to have much in common with the dullness of dehydrated soups, and the very light "green" hint of flavor of fresh green onion isn't the kind of complexity or delicacy I've ever seen in a dehydrated soup before.

On keeping tofu, it's no harder than opening a bag to pull a few slices out of a loaf of bread and closing it up again. Dumping the water out and filling it up again amounts to ten seconds every few days.

[PassiveCaller]

I tried this Annie Chau's one that came in these bowls. Not bad. On the whole I'd probably go with making your own though since it's really not that difficult and you can just make a larger amount for a week or something. If anyone has any suggestions on that... I've really just started to messed around since there's quite variance often with what goes in. If any one has any suggestions on home made miso soup that'd rock.

Good Miso rocks.

[Luzion]

Dont buy the powder. I have a hard time believing the powder could be any good.

Go to your Asian grocer and buy some miso paste for making miso soup, and some instant dashi powder. Dashi is a very common broth in Japanese cooking btw.

Its as easy as putting a packet of instant dashi broth powder into some water, and spooning some miso paste to get miso soup. You might wanna add some optional shallots, mushrooms, tofu, soy sauce, etc etc.

[B Dids]

This was my thought. Based on what I know of Miso, it's not hard to just make it outright.

Miso is really up there in terms of quality comfort food.

[Blarg]

I've never had it in powder form. I had it in paste. But even the pastes vary in quality or taste.

[The Goober]

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Go to your Asian grocer and buy some miso paste for making miso soup

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Yeah, I'm not sure why you would want powdered miso, since "real" miso is just a paste that you throw into a bowl with some boiling water. The only difference is that the paste has be refrigerated once it's opened, but there's absolutely nothing to it. Adding green onions, seaweed, etc, is optional.

I have no idea what the name of the stuff I buy is (its all in japanese) but it comes in a square tub with a gold label and it's quite good.

Kikkoman makes a very good instant miso soup if all you want to do is the hot water thing. I agree with the above poster about it being much better if you make it yourself. Just stop by an Asian foods shop and get some dried dashi (fish stock) and some miso paste out of their fridge. Dissolve the dashi powder in boiling water, add a couple teaspoons of miso and you've got miso soup. Add some dried seaweed and some tofu chunks if you want.

[astroglide]

the kikkoman instant is good. gf picked it up at world market, i think it was like $2.50 for 3 packets and the packets make like a small mug's worth of soup. not a good deal, but it's probably because of where it was purchased. maybe i'll try making it myself soon, but this did what i wanted it to do.

[Boris]

I'll check out the pinovas. No help from me on the miso soup. One of my favorite lunches is the organic tortilla with hummus, tomato, edam and baby spinach. Good stuff. I have to eat the healthy stuff between polluting my body with a night on the town with El D.