miso soup

Miso (yahoo!) has health benefits without the drawbacks found in its controversial cousin, tofu.

Made of fermented soy, miso is a complete protein, containing all of the essential amino acids (super cool, especially for non-meat-eaters who will need a nice well rounded protein source) and vitamin B (especially B12), it stimulates the secretion of digestive fluids in the stomach, restores beneficial probiotics and aids digestion and food assimilation in the intestines and, woo hoo, is said to reduce the risk of breast, prostate, lung and colon cancers. Sweet!

Many of the benefits come from soy isoflavones so keep in mind that red or brown miso contains more isoflavones than white or yellow miso.

Super important: Get organic miso since soy is one of the worst culprits as far as being genetically modified and sprayed with pesticides, yuck! If you get organic you’ll be good to go.

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Miso Soup Recipe

• 1 cup + 4 cups water
• 1 tsp wakame flakes
• 1 cup daikon radish, sliced into thin rounds then quartered (about 1 medium radish)
• 1 cup onion, sliced thin (about 1 medium onion)
• 1/4 cup celery, sliced chunky (about 1/2 medium celery stalk, optional)
• 2 tbsp organic miso (I used hacho miso)
• 1/4 cup scallions, chopped

Combine wakame with 1 cup warm water and let stand 15 min or until reconstituted. Drain in sieve and set aside.

In large pot, bring radish, onions and 4 cups water to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 min. Remove 4 tbsp of soup stock and mix with miso in small bowl. Stir miso and wakame into soup and simmer 2 min. Garnish with scallions and enjoy!