Mushroom-barley soup with red miso

Mushroom-barley soup with red miso

3
Points®
Total Time
49 min
Prep
12 min
Cook
37 min
Serves
6
Difficulty
Easy
This is not your grandma’s barley soup: Our veggie-packed, Asian-inspired version features an intriguing mix of colors and flavors for a soul-satisfying meal in a bowl. Red miso is a particularly deep-flavored type of miso, but you can substitute milder white or yellow varieties if you prefer. Shopping tip: Mushroom broth is a flavorful option for making vegan and vegetarian soups. Look for it in larger supermarkets and health-food stores.

Ingredients

Dried shiitake mushroom

1 oz

Water

2 cup(s), boiling

Canola oil

1 Tbsp

Carrots

3 medium, sliced

Uncooked onion

1 medium, finely chopped

Garlic

3 clove(s), minced

Fresh ginger

1 Tbsp, grated

Uncooked pearl barley

cup(s)

Vegetable broth

6 cup(s), or mushroom broth

Uncooked bok choy

½ pound(s), halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch slices

Miso

3 Tbsp, red variety

Fresh lemon juice

1 Tbsp

Scallions

4 medium, dark-green parts only, sliced

Instructions

  1. Place mushrooms in large glass measure or bowl and add boiling water. Let soak until mushrooms are softened, about 20 minutes. With slotted spoon, lift mushrooms out of water; reserve liquid. Chop mushrooms.
  2. Meanwhile, heat oil in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add carrots and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring constantly, just until fragrant, about 30 seconds longer.
  3. Stir barley and mushrooms into Dutch oven; pour in reserved mushroom liquid, pouring carefully so that any grit in bottom of cup is left behind. Stir in broth and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until barley is tender, about 30 minutes. Stir in bok choy and simmer until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes longer.
  4. Whisk together miso and 1 cup hot broth from pot in small bowl until smooth. Stir into soup along with lemon juice. Serve sprinkled with scallions.
  5. Serving size: about 1 1/2 cups