Shinsyu-ichi Miko Instant Miso Soup With Tofu - A Review
Shinsyu-ichi Miko Instant Miso Soup With Tofu
I became acquainted with miso soup in Japanese restaurants, where it is a common side item on lunch specials. It is a soy-based soup; very light, with green onions, seaweed, and tofu cubes.
Shinsyu-ichi Miko Instant Miso Soup With Tofu is a reasonable substitute for those who want to enjoy this delicious soup at home. We were able to find this 6.08 oz (171.2g) bag at our local Asian market, although I have also seen it for sale at Sam's Club.
There are several varieties of this instant soup; with tofu, without tofu, and even with spinach. I like the tofu version, although the cubes of tofu in this soup are not nearly as large as I became accustomed to in restaurants.
There are eight servings per bag, at a cost of about $0.40 per serving. Each serving consists of two packages, one which consists of the fish/miso paste, and the other, which is freeze-dried green onions, seaweed, and tofu cubes.
The first step in making the soup is to empty both packages into a soup bowl. The packages are perforated so you can just tear them open without needing scissors.
Make sure to squeeze all of the miso paste out of the package!
The brown paste is the miso. The dark green things are the seaweed pieces and the light green things are the pieces of green onion. You may also be able to see the tofu, which are the small white cubes in the bowl.
The two caveats I have with this soup are that it is pretty high in sodium (790 mg per serving) and that you have to get the water you use to reconstitute the soup boiling hot or the miso will not completely dissolve and the soup will have a grittiness to it.
Despite the label claiming that this product contains fish, I do not find this miso soup product or miso in general to have an overly "fishy" taste. It is a little salty but not too much so. This soup does not need soda crackers, although the broth is thin.
Overall, I really enjoy this soup. It travels well as a lunch item for work, and it is a very low calorie (35 cal) comfort food when you are cold or tired or just for tea time. It's also very easy to prepare. The freeze-dried items reconstitute fairly quickly and it is ready to eat in only about one minute.
Happy eating!
