camp meals

Miso Mushroom Morning Soup

Dried shiitake, miso, and freeze-dried egg in one small pot before the sun clears the ridge.

calories
310
weight
2.6 oz
cal / oz
119
protein
15 g
serves
2, scales
prep
3 min
cook
10 min
total time
13 min
water
500 ml boiled
cost
$$

Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.

  • Breakfast
  • Canister stove
  • Liquid fuel
  • Backpacking
  • Car camping
  • Basecamp
  • Winter / snow
  • Gluten free
  • Dairy free
  • Nut free
  • One pot
  • Pre-mix at home
  • Shelf stable
  • Basic

Ingredients

Dried shiitake mushrooms 1/2 cup sliced they rehydrate and flavor the broth at the same time
White miso paste 2 tbsp in a small screw-top jar; it does not need a cooler
Freeze-dried whole egg powder 1/3 cup replaces the soft-boiled egg
Dried spinach or dried kale flakes 1/3 cup
Dried scallion or chive flakes 1 tbsp
Tamari 2 tsp gluten-free soy sauce, in a leakproof dropper
Toasted sesame oil 2 tsp add off heat or it goes flat

Method

  1. Bring 500 ml of water to a boil. Drop in the shiitake and let them simmer five minutes until they go soft and the water turns brown.
  2. Add the dried greens and scallion. Two more minutes is enough.
  3. Pull the pot off the stove. Whisk the egg powder into a splash of the hot broth in your mug first, then stir that back into the pot so it does not clump.
  4. Scoop out a spoonful of broth, stir the miso into it until smooth, and return it to the pot. Do not boil after this point.
  5. Finish with the tamari and sesame oil. Pour into mugs.

The source version wanted a cooler, a knife, and fresh eggs. None of that survives a pack. Dried shiitake do the same job better anyway, because the soaking water becomes the broth instead of getting poured off. Egg powder stands in for the soft-boiled egg and gives the pot most of its protein.

Miso goes in last, off heat. Boiling it flattens the flavor and turns it harsh. Same with the sesame oil, which is aromatic and volatile and does nothing if it sits over a flame. The greens are dried, so they hydrate in about the time it takes the mushrooms to finish.

Packing

Shiitake, greens, scallion, and egg powder go in one bag. Miso rides in its own small jar, oil and tamari in dropper bottles. Everything is dry or fermented, so nothing needs ice.

Variations

  • A crushed block of rice vermicelli in the last three minutes turns it into a real meal.
  • Half a teaspoon of chili crisp if you want it to wake you up faster.

https://camprecipes.com/savory-miso-vegetable-breakfast-soup