At sushi restaurants in Sweden, Miso Soup often comes with coriander and chili. For Japanese people, this is actually quite far from a traditional japanese Miso Soup.
To be honest, I actually like the coriander and chili version too. But this time, I want to share the easiest Japanese-style Miso Soup recipe I can make using ingredients that are easy to find in Sweden.
First, a little about Miso Soup in Japan!
Japanese Miso Soup is a traditional soup that has been loved since the samurai era.
It is not only delicious, but also warming and an easy way to create a balanced meal, which is probably why it has stayed popular for so long.
There is even an old Japanese saying: “A bowl of Miso Soup gives you the strength to walk three ri.”
Three ri is about 12 kilometers, and the saying reflects the old belief that drinking Miso Soup in the morning helps give you energy for the day.
One of the best things about Miso Soup is how many different ingredients you can put into it. Tofu, wakame seaweed, vegetables, root vegetables, mushrooms… you can combine all kinds of things in one bowl. By choosing your ingredients well, it becomes an easy way to add protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals while helping the whole meal feel more balanced.
That is one of the reasons I love eating Miso Soup every morning. It makes me feel connected to Japan, warms my body, and helps me start the day feeling calm and comforted.
So, let’s get straight to the recipe.
Miso Soup Recipe (8–10 bowls)
⚠️ This recipe is designed to use up one full pack of tofu and one full pack of shimeji mushrooms. Some ingredients, like carrot, are given as a range such as 70–100g because every family makes Miso Soup a little differently. Some people like more ingredients, while others prefer less. If you are not sure, start with the smaller amount and adjust to your taste.
Ingredients
Prep
Instructions
Why Miso Soup is so good
・It makes it easier to create a balanced meal
・It goes well with almost any other dish
・You can change the ingredients, so it never get boring even if you eat it often
・It is easy to adapt with leftover ingredients from the fridge
・If you make it full of ingredients, it can even feel like a satisfying main dish
・It has that comforting feeling of real Japanese home cooking
・It is warm, cozy, and reassuring
About shopping for the ingredients
🛒 What is best to buy at an Asian grocery store
I usually shop at the online store PONG MARKET, or at stores like Oriental Supermarket and AM Store in Stockholm. Many other Asian grocery stores often carry these ingredients too, so it is worth checking what is available near you.
Some Swedish supermarkets sell them as well, but they are usually more expensive there.
🟤 About the different types of Miso
Miso is the most important ingredient in Miso Soup, and there are Red Miso and White Miso. Different regions in Japan have different styles of miso soup and different preferences when it comes to flavor and ingredients.
🟥Red Miso
Taste: strong, rich, full-bodied, and often a bit saltier in character. It has a more grown-up kind of flavor.
⬜️White Miso
Taste: sweeter, milder, gentler, and more comforting.
🟥＋⬜️Blended Miso（Blended miso is made by combining different kinds of miso.）
Taste: gentler than Red miso, less sweet than White miso, rich but not too heavy, with a very balanced and easy-to-use flavor.
By the way, I am from Gifu, so I grew up with Red miso being the familiar taste at home. Hatcho miso itself is from Aichi, but since it is hard to find in Sweden, I use regular red miso here instead.
🛒 These ingredients are also fairly easy to find in Swedish supermarkets
🍄🟫 Recommended mushrooms
- Shimeji – 150g
It adds umami without overpowering the dashi or miso, and the texture is nicely balanced—not too soft, not too firm. - Enoki – 100g
Easy to enjoy every day. - Nameko – 80g
Great if you want the soup to have a slightly silky texture. - Maitake – 80g
Best when you want a stronger mushroom aroma. - Shiitake – 70g
A good choice if you want a deeper, more traditional Japanese flavor.
There are so many kinds of miso, mushrooms, and root vegetables, but there is usually no single “wrong” choice. Try different combinations and find the taste that feels like home to you.
Preparation
Instructions
boiling until done
⚠️ A few notes
・Even when reheating, try not to let the soup come to a full boil
・Miso soup also contains salt, so rather than drinking a lot of it with every meal, I think about one bowl a day is a good amount
・The more traditional way to make miso soup is to make dashi from bonito flakes, but this version is simply the easiest way to make Japanese Miso Soup in Sweden
This is how we make our Nordic Life Colorful! Enjoy your day!