Matsutake Suimono (Clear Soup)

Matsutake Soup  is a classic Japanese autumn soup with highly-prized fragrant matsutake mushrooms in clear dashi broth.  This type of soup does not have miso paste, and is called Suimono or Osuimono – “food you can sip”.

Matsutake Clear Soup (Suimono)

Author: Namiko Chen

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 1 (1.1 oz, 31 g) matsutake mushroom*
• 5.1 oz (145 g, 3” x 1.5”) silken tofu
• 4 Temari Fu (wheat gluten) (optional)
• 4 stalks mitsuba, or scallion/green onion
• Yuzu zest, if available

For dashi

• 2 cups water
• 0.2 oz (5 g, 3” x 3”) kombu
• 0.4 oz (10 g, 1 handful) katsuobushi

For seasoning

• 1 Tbsp. sake
• 2 tsp. mirin
• 2 tsp. soy sauce
• ½ tsp. salt

Instructions

1. Clean the matsutake mushroom with damp paper towel. NEVER wash the mushroom. Shave off a thin sliver of the mushroom stem as if you are sharping a pencil with knife. Cut into thin slices.
2. Tie 2 mitsuba’s stalks into a knot. If you use scallion, finely slice it.
3. Gently clean the dashi kombu with a damp cloth but leave the white powdery substances which contribute to the umami flavor in dashi. Do not wash the kombu.
4. In a medium pot, put the kombu in the water. Heat up slowly on medium low heat. If you have time, soak for 3 hours or up to half day ahead of time. Kombu’s flavor comes out naturally from soaking in water.
5. When boiling, add the katsuobushi. Simmer for just 30 seconds and turn off the heat.
6. Strain the dashi through a sieve lined with a paper towel set over a bowl. Gently twist and squeeze the paper towel to release the extra dashi into the bowl.
7. Transfer the dashi to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the seasonings.
8. Cut tofu into small cubes and add to the soup. Then add sliced matsutake mushrooms and cook until ingredients are heated through, about 2-3 minutes.
9. Soak temari fu in water to hydrate. When temari fu is soft, squeeze water out and place it in a serving bowl.
10. Add mitsuba in the soup right before serving. Serve the soup into bowls.

Notes

*Use other kinds of mushrooms if matsutake is not available.

http://www.justonecookbook.com/matsutake-clear-soup/