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 Alisa Fleming ~ Getting a jump start on cold and flu season doesn’t necessarily mean piping hot bowls of chicken soup. According to the World’s Healthiest Foods, “If one mineral were awarded first prize for its beneficial effects on immune function, it would be zinc. A cofactor in a wide variety of enzymatic reactions, zinc is critical to immune function and wound healing.” Fortunately, miso, a food often thought of as just a Japanese condiment, is a good source of zinc along with copper and manganese, two other trace minerals that are essential for energy production and antioxidant defenses. But miso is best handled with care, as heating it can destroy many of its health benefits.
Enter Ani, raw food guru, and her latest cookbook, Ani’s Raw Food Asia. She has harnessed the power of miso and several healthy greens in an uncooked version of miso soup. Her recipe is below, but I want to add a few quick notes before you jump right in: Soy-Free: Many people assume that miso is always a soy-based food, but there are many varieties that are soy-free. Miso fermented from brown rice, chickpeas, or barley is fairly easy to find in North America, at natural food stores, online, or even in some conventional grocers. In Asia, you can even find millet- or rye-based miso paste.
Temperature: If you are like me, you may prefer your soup on the warm side. If you opt to heat the broth at all, be sure to add the miso at the very end, just before serving, to preserve its enzymatic benefits. Ani’s version is served lukewarm, at room temperature. Recipe: Miso Soup with Spinach and Bean Sprouts Summary: From the book Ani’s Raw Food Asia by Ani Phyo. Excerpted by arrangement with Da Capo Lifelong, a member of the Perseus Books Group. Copyright © 2011. www.dacapopresscookbooks.com. Ingredients - 1 Cup Mung Bean Sprouts
- 2 Cups Washed, Coarsely Chopped Spinach
- 2 Tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 Tablespoons Miso, unpasteurized, any color
- 3 Cups Water
- 2 Tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Teaspoon Minced Garlic
- 2 Tablespoons Diced Scallion
Instructions - Marinate sprouts and spinach by tossing with extra-virgin olive oil. Set aside to soften.
- To make your broth, whisk together miso and a small amount of water. Slowly add remaining water, oil, and garlic. You can also blend if you want instead.
- To serve, transfer broth into four serving bowls. Top with marinated sprouts and spinach and garnish with scallion. Enjoy immediately.
- Broth will keep for 4 to 5 days when stored separately in fridge.
Quick notes Miso is a living food. It starts off cooked, but it’s then fermented and contains living enzymes. The best way to enjoy miso is raw, and even in Asia, miso is added to warm, never boiling, water so as to not damage the enzymes and beneficial probiotic bacteria. Pasteurization kills beneficial bacteria, so make sure to use an unpasteurized miso. Most natural food stores have mung bean sprouts, but if you can’t find any, just use another sprout like alfalfa. Preparation time: 15 minute(s) Cooking time: Diet type: Vegan Diet tags: Gluten free, Dairy Free, Raw, optionally Soy Free Number of servings (yield): 4 Want More? Try Ani's Summer Rolls with Ginger “Peanut” Sauce Recipe and photo from Ani’s Raw Food Asia by Ani Phyo. Article by Alisa Fleming, founder of GoDairyFree.org and author of Go Dairy Free: The Guide and Cookbook for Milk Allergies, Lactose Intolerance, and Casein-Free Living. Alisa is also a freelance writer for several publications, with an emphasis on creating recipes for various types of special diets. 
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