Japanese Nettle Soup

🧂 Ingredients

• 100 g stinging nettles
• 3 small dried shiitake mushrooms

  (about 15 grams)
• 300 g small yellow potatoes

  diced
• 1 medium onion

  chopped
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp mirin
• 3x5 inch piece kombu
• 225 g chinese cabbage

  (~1/4 head)
• 3 tbsp white miso
• 2 tsp tamari

  (substitute soy sauce)
• 2 tsp rice vinegar
• 1/2 cup short grain white rice
• cherry blossoms

  to garnish (optional)
• mizuna

  to garnish (optional)

Instructions

• 1 Soak the shiitake mushrooms in 1 cup of cold water for at least 1 hour, or up to
  overnight. Do not discard the water used to soak the mushrooms.
• 2 Soak the kombu in 2 liters of cold water. If you're soaking the mushrooms
  overnight, then do the same with the kombu. If you're pressed for time, simply
  soak the kombu as long as possible while doing the other steps.
• 3 Wear gloves while working with the raw nettles. Pick through them and remove any
  thick stems or bad leaves, the gently wash the nettles in cold water. Drain and
  set aside.
• 4 Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the nettles and blanch
  for 45 seconds, then drain and rinse with cold water. Set the cooked nettles
  aside (you no longer need gloves to handle them).
• 5 Preheat oven to 400 F.
• 6 Toss the potatoes and onions with the oil and spread out over a baking tray.
  Roast for about 15 minutes or until browned and very fragrant.
• 7 While the vegetables are cooking, remove the mushrooms from their soaking
  liquid, remove the stems, and dice the caps. The stems are generally quite tough
  and should be discarded, though you can add them into the stock and fish them
  out later for added flavour. Do not discard the mushroom stock (soaking liquid)!
• 8 Add tamari, mirin, and rice vinegar to the pot of water and kombu, then bring to
  a simmer over medium-high heat. Once the broth is simmering, remove the kombu
  and skim any bits. Add the mushrooms, mushroom stock, roasted veggies, and
  cabbage, then return to a simmer. Add rice, cover, and simmer until the rice is
  done; about 15 minutes.
• 9 Add the blanched nettles to the pot and simmer for an additional 2 minutes.
• 10 Puree the soup with an immersion blender or in a blender or food processor.
  Serve warm, garnished with bitter greens or edible flowers (or really any
  garnish you'd like). I used cherry blossoms and mizuna.

Nutrition Info