Description
How to make classic Japanese homemade Tonjiru (豚汁) Pork and Vegetable Miso Soup. Tender pork belly cooked in a dashi broth with a variety of vegetables and then flavoured with a rich miso paste. Serves 6-8.
Ingredients
- 200g Pork belly block
- 1/2 Small daikon radish (or 1/4 large)
- 1 Carrot
- 1/2 Gobo (burdock root)
- 4 Shiitake mushrooms
- 50g Spring onion
- 1 sheet konjac
- 2 sheets aburaage (fried tofu)
- 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1500ml dashi
- 3 + 3-4 tbsp Miso paste (I used Hikari Awase Miso Paste)
- 1 tsp Soy sauce
- 1 tsp Mirin
- 1 drizzle Sesame oil
- Chopped spring onion to garnish (optional)
- Shichimi Togarashi (optional)
Instructions
Prep
- Cut the pork belly into 2mm thick slices.
- Peel the daikon radish and carrot. Cut the daikon into thick slices (about 1-2cm) and then cut each slice into quarters.
- Cut the carrot into rough chunks.
- Remove the skin of the gobo by scraping it with the back of a knife. Cut it into diagonal slices up to 1cm thick and then place in cold water to soak.
- Cut off the stem of the shiitake mushrooms and cut into slices.
- Slice the spring onion diagonally, approx 1cm thick.
- Take the sheet of konjac and use a spoon to make bite-size balls.
- Thinly slice the aburaage.
Cooking
- Heat a large pot on medium and add 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter.
- Once the butter is melted, add the pork and fry until the surface is sealed.
- Add the gobo to the pot and stir fry for 1 minute.
- Next, add the carrot, daikon radish, mushroom, konjac and aburaage. Mix everything together.
- Pour the 1500ml of dashi into the pot and stir.
- Introduce 3 tbsp of miso paste to the soup using a mesh spoon or ladel. (Whisking the miso with the hot dashi helps incorporate it into the soup and prevents lumps.)
- Mix and simmer for 15 mins.
- Scoop off any foam that develops on the surface of the soup. (This will prevent the broth from becoming cloudy.)
- Add spring onion and simmer for a further 10 minutes.
- Add 1 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp of mirin, then turn off the heat.
- Add up to 4 more tbsp of miso paste using the mesh spoon/ladle technique. Add it 1 tbsp at a time and taste test before adding more. (You might need more or less depending on the brand/type of miso.)
- Drizzle with sesame oil and serve.
- Top each serving with chopped spring onion and a sprinkle of Japanese shichimi togarashi (optional).
- Enjoy!
Notes
Other than pork and miso paste, the other ingredients can be swapped or omitted. See in post for more ideas. I recommend using at least 3 different vegetables.
To make dashi stock, you can either buy stock powder or cubes from your local asian super market OR you can try making your own, check out my recipe on how to make homemade awase dashi here.
If you can't find or make dashi, you can just use plain boiling water but won't have as much depth of flavour.
If you have leftovers you can store in the fridge and eat within 2-3 days.
When reheating, heat on the stove and turn off the heat just before it starts to boil. (Overcooking will diminish the flavour of the miso paste.)
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Category: Soup
- Method: Boiling
- Cuisine: Japanese
Keywords: Tonjiru, butajiru, how to make tonjiru, tonjiru recipe, how to make tonjiru, butajiru recipe, how to make butajiru, tonjiru ingredients, tonjiru soup, what is tonjiru, what is tonjiru made of, what does tonjiru mean, pork soup, pork miso soup, pork and vegetable miso soup, Japanese soups, miso tonjiru, tonjiru soup, tonjiru soup recipe