Budget-Friendly Miso Soup

By Chef Amanda DeLaura

During our recent Instagram live, David and I talked about how to make food that is sustainable and nutritious while not breaking the bank. This recipe is a perfect example of how to create a budget-friendly dinner, using a leftover chicken carcass to make your own broth and reserving any meat from the bone to throw into the soup at the end. After roasting a chicken, I always freeze the carcass and any remaining meat so that I can make my own broth at my own convenience. If you have a carcass in your freezer or if you’re planning on serving roasted chicken for a family supper, reserve the carcass, make your own broth, shred any reserved meat, and give this recipe a try. Bon appétit!

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 bunch green onions, roughly chopped

1 stalk celery, diced

1 carrot, diced

2 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced

1 inch piece of ginger, very thinly sliced

3 Tsp organic miso paste

1 small cabbage (or half if large), chopped into bite-sized pieces

5 to 6 cups organic chicken broth

1 cup shredded organic chicken (or whatever you can pick from the bones)

1 Tbsp mirin

1 tsp fish sauce

1 Tbsp cilantro, minced

juice from 1/2 lime

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Once shimmering, add the green onions, celery and carrot to the pan. Season with 1/2 tsp real salt and cook till sweating and the onions are translucent, about 3 minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic and ginger and continue to cook till aromatic, about 1 minute, being sure to not burn any of the bits in the pan. If the onions or garlic begin to burn, add a little bit of water to keep them from sticking to the pan.
2. Add 3 Tbsp miso paste and stirring continually, cook for about 1 minute, until aromatic, browned and mixed well into the vegetables, garlic and ginger. Add the chopped cabbage, season with another 1/2 tsp real salt and about 1/4 tsp fresh cracked pepper. Mix and add the chicken broth and pulled chicken.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, partially covered. Once the cabbage is cooked through and wilted, add 1 Tbsp mirin, 1 tsp fish sauce and stir to combine. Remove from heat and top with 1 Tbsp cilantro and juice from 1/2 lime.