This is delicious Japanese noodle and mushroom soup that is easy to make and very healthy. It only takes about 15 minutes to prepare, and that makes it perfect for busy midweek dinners.

While we prefer shitake mushrooms for this recipe, you can use Swiss brown or button mushrooms, if you like. You’ll enjoy similar nutritional benefits and taste.

The best kind of mushrooms to use, though, is a mixed Asian selection. Just be sure to add in firmer mushrooms at the beginning so that their flavour can be drawn out. This would be wood ear and shitake mushrooms, for example. Use the more delicate mushrooms, such as Enoki, at the end of the process to simply heat them gently.

While this recipe is a vegan one, meat eaters can switch out the vegetable stock for a chicken stock and even add in some chicken breast for some extra protein. You can take the tofu out of the recipe, if you like.

This recipe is meant to serve four.

What You’ll Need:

• • One litre of vegetable stock (homemade or organic are the best)
  • One tablespoon of miso paste (you can switch that out for instant miso, if you like)
  • Two tablespoons of soy sauce (if you use dark soy sauce, only use one tablespoon; this recipe is for light soy sauce)
  • One tablespoon of rice wine vinegar
  • One tablespoon of mirin
  • One pack of drained tofu, cut into small cubes
  • 350 grams of shitake mushrooms- remove the stalks and cut into half centimetre slices
  • 200 grams of soba noodles, prepared according to package directions
  • Three shallots, chopped into small pieces
  • Pak choy stalks, chopped into small slices (you can also use choy sum), and cut all the leaves into strips
  • Black sesame seeds for garnish

Directions:

• • Heat the vegetable stock on high heat, in a saucepan.
  • Lower the heat to a simmer and add in mushrooms.
  • While that is heating, make the soba noodles according to the directions on the packaging.
  • You should boil those noodles separately from the main stock and then add them into four bowls, so you can add in the soup when it is finished.
  • Add the mirin, miso, vinegar and tofu to the stock and mix. The tofu needs to be heated thoroughly.
  • Add in the Pak choy stalks and let them cook for about a minute.
  • Remove soup from mixture and add in leaves, then dish the soup into the noodles.
  • Garnish with shallots and black sesame seeds.