Spring Soups – Light, Flavorful and Easy!
This Genmaicha (pron. gain-MY-cha or more commonly heard as jen-MA-cha) Tea soup is made with a base that combines the Genmaicha Tea (a green-tea-with-toasted-rice) with sweet roots, earthy vegetables, mushrooms and the bright warm spice of ginger. We add miso to round out the flavor profile to end up with a delicate, light and really flavorful soup. For a gourmet finish, add a drop or two of toasted sesame oil. For your Perfect Pairing try The Vineyard at Hershey Gewürztraminer. This fruit forward wine has tropical citrus notes that accentuate the ginger and miso in this dish perfectly.
Recipe: Genmaicha Tea Soup
Serves about 4
Ingredients
4 tablespoons TSTE® Genmaicha Tea*
1 tablespoon Gourmet Garden® Ginger paste**
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup frozen (shelled) edamame, thawed
1 cup shredded carrots
2 cups shiitake mushrooms, chopped
1 ½ tablespoons red miso, optional (more to taste)*
2 teaspoons TSTE® Soy Sauce Powder* (more to taste)
3 green onions, sliced thin on diagonal
Basil leaves, coarse chop, to garnish
Optional 1 baby bok choy, thinly sliced, to garnish
*I use and recommend The Spice & Tea Exchange seasonings and blends for this recipe. You can find and order them at http://www.SpiceandTea.com.
**I use and recommend Gourmet Garden Herb and Seasoning pastes in my kitchen. You can find Gourmet Garden in your grocer’s produce section or online at GourmetGarden.com.
Preparation
COMBINE tea and ginger. ADD 8 cups boiling water and steep for 6 minutes. STRAIN into soup pot over medium-high heat; bring to boil. WHISK in honey and half of your vegetables. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. WHISK in miso (if using) (See note about working with miso and hot liquids) and soy sauce powder to taste. *Optional: Allow soup to cool and miso solids (along with vegetables) to sink to the bottom, about 2 to 3 hours. Slowly strain through a sieve lined with several layers of damp paper-towels. Reheat and add remaining vegetables before serving. ADD green onions, a few basil leaves, and bok choy (if using) to garnish.
*Note: When you add miso to hot liquids the miso solids will separate and settle out. If you’re serving your soup right away, no worries. However, if you’re making it ahead, it’s worth the added step to strain these solids out. You’ll sacrifice the vegetables, but we think it worth it to get their delicious flavor into the stock. You can add another round of vegetables to the soup when your reheat your now clear broth.