I'm going to show you how to make a hearty vegetable soup using shio koji. It's been super hot and humid here in Tokyo and this gentle soup is perfect for my tired body. This soup is also great when I want to just use up all the leftover veggies that I don't really know what to do with. It's super delicious and good for you.
2tbsp(2tbsp)soup stock(Use any kinds you like. I used consomme granules and dashi powder. )
0.5tbspblack pepper
800ml(3.4cups)water
directions
Preparation
Chop up the vegetables, meat, garlic, and ginger into small pieces.
Cooking the Soup
In a large pot, add water, soup stock, ginger and garlic, and all the vegetables and meat.Turn on the heat to medium and cover with a lid.
After cooking for five minutes, give it a good stir and mix all the ingredients.Cover with the lid again and let it cook for about 10 more minutes or until the vegetables are translucent but not mushy.
If you are in a hurry, you can cook it a bit more until the vegetables are soft and finish it up by seasoning it with shio koji and black pepper. The soup will come out absolutely delicious.But if you are making this ahead of time, you can follow the steps below to make use of the magical power of the enzymes in shio koji to make the soup extra delicious!
Resting the Soup - Let Shio Koji Do Its Magic!
Stop the heat and cover it with the lid and let it cool down for about an hour or until the soup is below 60 °C (140 °F). This will prevent killing the enzymes in shio koji once we add it in.
Once the soup is cooled enough, add some shio koji. We don't need to fully season yet, so go easy on the amount of shio koji you are adding.
After stirring, cover it with the lid and let it sit for about an hour or longer, and let shio koji do its magic. The magical power of the enzymes in shio koji is that they will break down the vegetables and meat to create umami and sweetness from them. If you are going to let it sit for hours, keep it in the fridge so it doesn't go bad.
Finishing Up the Soup
To finish up, you can add some water to make it as soupy as you like. Then add black pepper to taste and turn on the heat. Check the flavor, and see if it's seasoned enough. If not, add some more shio koji to your taste. Give it a final stir, and it's ready to serve!
Recipe Notes
Feel free to adjust the ingredient amount to your taste.
Dashi powder:- If You Are Outside of Japan: https://geni.us/LD7XA- If You Are in Japan: https://geni.us/AI3BtbThese dashi powder products are not exactly the same as the one I used in the video but are similar.
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