Description
A flavorful and comforting miso soup featuring tender chicken thighs, shiitake mushrooms, fresh vegetables, and delicate rice noodles, all brought together with a savory miso broth. Perfect for a nourishing dinner or lunch.
Ingredients
Scale
Protein
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs
Vegetables
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 6 oz. shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced into ¼” strips
- 2 medium carrots, sliced (approx. 1 cup)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 4 heads baby bok choy, cut into bite-size pieces, about 3 cups
Broth & Seasonings
- 8 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Japanese rice wine or pale dry sherry
- ½ - 1 tablespoon red chili paste (like sambal oelek)
- ¼ cup white miso paste
Noodles & Oils
- 3 oz. thin rice noodles (vermicelli/rice sticks)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Instructions
- Brown the Chicken: Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a Dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs and brown on both sides for about 2 minutes, but do not cook fully through. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.
- Sauté Vegetables: Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the now empty pot and heat over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onions and sliced carrots and sauté for 3 minutes. Then add the sliced shiitake mushrooms, grated ginger, and minced garlic, and sauté for an additional 1 minute.
- Simmer with Broth and Seasonings: Return the browned chicken to the pot. Pour in the chicken broth, soy sauce, rice vinegar, Japanese rice wine, and red chili paste. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and gently simmer for 10 minutes or until the chicken is tender enough to shred. Once cooked, remove the chicken and shred it with forks when cool enough to handle. You may continue simmering the soup without the chicken if you prefer softer mushrooms.
- Dissolve the Miso Paste: Place the miso paste in a medium bowl. Ladle some hot broth from the pot into the bowl and whisk until the miso is fully dissolved. Set aside the miso mixture.
- Add Noodles and Vegetables: Add the rice noodles and chopped red bell pepper to the pot. Simmer for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, then add the baby bok choy, shredded chicken, and the miso mixture. Cover the pot and let sit for 1-2 minutes to allow the noodles to become al dente and the bok choy to wilt. Do not boil or continue simmering after adding the miso, as this will ruin the texture.
Notes
- You can substitute shiitake mushrooms with cremini mushrooms, but add them with the bell peppers since they cook faster.
- The rice noodles are usually very long; you can cut them slightly before adding or use kitchen shears after cooking to shorten them.
- White miso paste is often found in the refrigerated section of grocery stores or Asian markets, and can also be purchased online.
- If baby bok choy is unavailable, spinach or kale can be used as alternative greens.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 180 kcal
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 750 mg
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 15 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 15 g
- Cholesterol: 45 mg
