Quick miso soup

Serves 4, vegan
I paricularly like miso soup and I developed this recipe so I could make the soup quickly in a wok and serve within 10 minutes or so without having to make the dashi. You don't have to use the vegetables I have just use what is available or in season at the time.
Ingredients 1 litre (4 cups) water 140ml (10 tbsp) light soy sauce 120ml (8 tbsp) mirin 2 tablespoons miso 1 tablespoon dried vegetable bouillion or 2 stock cubes little sesame oil for frying 2 carrots, peeled 1 bok choi, quartered lengthways 8 mushrooms, sliced	First of all make the quick miso stock. Heat the water in a pan until it comes to the boil. Add the soy, mirin, miso and stock powder and mix them together thoroughly. Allow it to simmer for two minutes and then take it off the heat. This is the base for your soup.
	Heat a little sesame oil in a wok and add your chopped vegetables. Stir fry them over a high heat until they start to brown - this will just take a few minutes. Add the stock and bring the soup back to the boil. Check that the soup is seasoned enough - you may need to add a little sugar - and serve by spooning the vegetables into your soup bowls and ladling over the stock.

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Miso is a salty paste made from the fermentation of soy beans, rice or barley. there are two main types white miso and red miso. The white miso tends to be much sweeter and is the one I prefer but don't worry if you don't know which one to choose (there are many varieties) all types will work fine in the recipes in this book.
Mirin is a sweetened sake with a similar taste to a sweet sherry. It is used a lot in Japanese cooking and used in many recipes in this book so it is worth seeking out a bottle. Lots of supermarkets now stock mirin and you will more than likely find it in your local Asian grocer. It can be quite expensive but no more than a good sherry.