Tonjiru Recipe

Tonjiru is miso soup grown up into a meal: pork and a tumble of root vegetables simmered until tender, then enriched with miso until the broth turns deep and comforting. It is the kind of rustic, home-style soup Japanese families make on cold nights.

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

50 mins

Servings

4 servings

Calories

420

Ingredients

• 300 g pork belly or shoulder, thinly sliced
• 1 litre dashi stock
• 3 tablespoons miso paste
• 2 potatoes, cubed
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1/2 daikon radish, sliced
• 1 onion, sliced
• 100 g konnyaku, sliced (optional)
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 spring onions, sliced
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger
• Shichimi togarashi, to serve

Instructions

1. Heat the sesame oil in a pot and fry the pork for 3 minutes until lightly browned.
2. Add the onion, carrot, daikon and potatoes and stir for 2 minutes.
3. Pour in the dashi, bring to a gentle boil and skim any foam from the surface.
4. Simmer for 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
5. Ladle a little hot broth into a bowl, whisk in the miso until smooth, then stir it back into the pot.
6. Add the ginger and warm through for 2 minutes without boiling hard.
7. Serve in bowls topped with spring onions and shichimi to taste.

Pro tips

• Never boil miso soup vigorously after adding the miso, or its aroma dulls.
• Cut the vegetables into similar sizes so they cook evenly.
• Tonjiru tastes even better the next day as the flavours deepen overnight.
• Add mushrooms or burdock root for an even more rustic version.

Frequently asked questions