Miso Soup - Sara Moulton

6 cups water
2 thin slices fresh ginger
1 medium carrot cut into thin strips
1/3 cup shiro miso (white fermented soybean paste)
1/2 cup small-diced silken tofu (about 3 ounces)
2 scallions thinly sliced
1 tablespoon sherry

Bring the water and ginger to a boil in a 2-quart saucepan. Add carrot, cover, and remove from heat. Let sit for 1 minute.

Whisk together shiro miso and 1/2 cup of the hot water in a small bowl until smooth, then whisk into the hot water. Remove and discard the ginger. Add tofu and scallions, divide among bowls, and serve immediately.

Serving Size: 6

Miso Soup II - Martha Stewart

1 4-inch square dried kombu, cleaned with a damp cloth
2/3 cup bonito flakes (fish flakes)
1/3 pound enoki mushrooms (1 package), a few reserved for garnish
2 tablespoons miso
2 scallions, finely sliced

To prepare the dashi, combine kombu and 4 cups water in a pot, and bring to a boil. Remove kelp, and discard. Add bonito flakes, stir well, and remove from the heat. Let flakes settle to the bottom of the pot (about 30 seconds). Strain the stock through a fine sieve, discarding bonito flakes.

Return stock to the pot, and add mushrooms. Cook over moderate heat until mushrooms have softened (about 3 minutes). In a small bowl, dissolve miso in a ladleful of dashi. Add dissolved miso to the soup, and stir to combine. Divide soup among four bowls, and sprinkle with reserved enoki and scallions.