Do you regularly make miso soup at home? If you enjoy the soup but wish to try out new variations, you’ll be happy to know that there are more than one or two ways to make it. In fact, you’ll find endless renditions of miso soups in Japan, very often incorporating seasonal ingredients. Since daikon is in season right now, let’s make Daikon and Fried Tofu Miso Soup! This recipe is a delicious example of utilizing the winter root vegetable in our daily soup while it’s at its sweetest. Exciting news: I recently learned that the 30th of every month is Miso Day (味噌の日). So, I decided that I’ll start sharing a different miso soup recipe every 30th of the month and keep them in the JOC Miso Soup Recipes collection. I hope it will inspire you to enjoy miso soup, if not every day, at least every 30th of the month.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
A wonderful combination of textures! You’ll enjoy the sweetness and juiciness of in-season daikon radishes in the miso soup, and the addition of a fried tofu pouch gives another layer of texture. A great way to use up daikon, especially if you’ve bought a whole one. Eat daikon and stay healthy! Daikon is rich in potassium and vitamin C. Vitamin C helps promote wound healing, produces collagen, and stabilizes blood sugar levels. It’s also a powerful antioxidant that may protect cells from free radicals. Just these reasons alone are convincing enough for us to cook more with daikon! You can learn more about its benefits here.
What is Daikon?
The large white daikon radish is an essential ingredient in Japanese cuisine and is used in various dishes. We pickle it, cook it with fish and meat, and even enjoy it raw for freshness. It has a delightful crunchy texture and can soak up broths and flavors in braises and soups. Daikon is available all year round, but it is best during autumn and winter when you can get a juicy and sweet daikon.
Best Daikon Part
Did you know that daikon tastes different depending on the part of the daikon you use? The top green part of the daikon tends to be sweeter while the tip of the daikon always tastes bitter. Japanese supermarkets sell precut daikon so you can buy just the green part. If you’re eating raw daikon like in Daikon Salad, or using grated daikon for Agedashi Tofu, make sure to use the top green part. I had a green part saved in the fridge, so I used it for this miso soup, highlighting the seasonal freshness and juiciness of daikon.
Ingredients for This Recipe
Dashi (Japanese soup stock) — In this recipe, I’ll share how I make dashi using a dashi packet – it’s easy and quick! I talk about other methods below. Daikon radish Aburaage (Deep-Fried Tofu Pouch) — You can use any type of tofu, but I highly recommend using deep-fried tofu or fried tofu puffs. Fried food adds rich flavor, depth, and complexity to the flavor of a dish. Miso — You can use any miso. I used organic barley miso from Hikari Miso in this recipe. Green onion (scallion)
How to Make Daikon and Fried Tofu Miso Soup
3 Ways to Make Dashi
Dashi is a Japanese soup stock, and many of you are already familiar with dashi-making methods. Just in case you’re new to making dashi, here are 3 ways to make dashi. If you want to learn more about dashi, check out The Ultimate Dashi Guide, where I talk about 6 different types of dashi and the above 3 methods in detail.
What to Serve with This Miso Soup
Rice: Hijiki Rice, Brown Rice, Mushroom Rice Main: Yellowtail Teriyaki, Ginger Pork, Simmered Beef with Ginger Sides: Kinpira Gobo, Simmered Kabocha, Stir-Fried Mushrooms and Eggs
More Daikon Recipes
16 Delicious Daikon Recipes All About Daikon (pantry page) Daikon Leaves Furikake – Did your daikon come with green leaves on top? Make this delicious seasoning!
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