This Japanese hot pot recipe ushers in the official fall soup season. On a recent rainy and gray day I prepared this simple but satisfying meal, which I like to serve with a couple of seven-minute eggs for protein. Fill it with any of the greens you like – I opted for bok choy this time around since that’s what Andy had stocked in the fridge. Kale and spinach work equally as well, though the latter will all but melt into the stock. I prefer the hardier stock of the kale, or the sturdy stems of the bok choy.
The mushrooms give it an earthy richness, as done the miso hidden in the stock. A generous helping of sliced daikon gives a bright white half-moon accent to many of the spoonfuls. My favorite part is the skin-on buttercup squash, which I microwave for a few minutes before cutting and dumping into the pot. The skin softens to something edible and fine.
Some Pacific seaweed gives it that essence of ocean that I so often desire, and a few teaspoons of mirin round out the flavors at hand. Simple and substantial, this one works on the coldest evenings, and will be a staple seeing us through the winter. I don’t want to think about that yet, so for now let’s just enjoy the sight, scent, and taste of soup on a fall night.
