The Classic Combination

• The most well-known form of miso soup includes miso paste, pieces of seaweed, tofu, scallions and a special broth called dashi. This classic version requires two different types of seaweed. Sheets of dried kelp called kombu flavor the broth, and tender pieces of seaweed called wakame are added to the soup just before serving.

Making the Broth

• Kombu contributes a salty, savory flavor base to the dashi broth. To make dashi, bring a pot of water to a boil with a large piece of kombu inside. Add bonito flakes – made from dried tuna – and turn off the heat. Allow everything to steep for a few minutes before straining the broth. For a vegetarian dashi, replace the bonito flakes with dried shiitake mushrooms and allow the broth to steep for an extra few minutes.

Finishing the Soup

• Before adding dried wakame to the soup, soak it in cold water for about 10 minutes to rehydrate it. Remove any thick stems from the wakame and cut it into bite-size pieces after it is rehydrated. The soup is ready for the wakame, tofu and scallions as soon as the miso paste is mixed into the dashi. For optimum flavor and consistency, serve the soup as soon as all the ingredients are incorporated.

Shopping for Seaweed

• Look for both kombu and wakame in Asian markets or the Asian foods section of grocery stores. Although some other varieties of seaweed can be used in lieu of the dried wakame, be aware that prepared wakame salad is not a good substitute. Meant to be eaten as a side dish, commercially made wakame salad usually contains other flavors and artificial color that make it very different from natural dried seaweed.