Chilli Miso Noodle Soup

I recently went to Dinings near Edgware Road and one of the dishes, a chilli salmon miso soup stuck with me for a while. It was delicious; on the menu I didn't think it would work, but I was glad I ordered it as it was intensely savoury and soothing. I decided to attempt a re-creation to make a big one-bowl meal. It ended up being a mish-mash of Japanese and Chinese ingredients and was filling and nourishing.

Slippery thin rice noodles bulked the soup out, while the pak choi and mange tout added essential crunch. I had hoped to grill the skin from the rainbow trout until it was puffy and crispy to serve on top, but it was Sunday lunchtime and I knew the honk of it would be antisocial in an open-plan flat. The chunks of fish are added to the broth to poach gently; boiling miso is said to ruin the health benefits of it, so a mere bubble of a simmer is all that is required.

Chilli Miso Noodle Soup

Serves 1

1 small salmon or rainbow trout fillet, chopped into thick chunks
1 heaped tbsp white miso
1 small piece of kombu seaweed
A small handful of bonito flakes (this and the kombu can be substituted with powdered dashi, available at Japanese and many Chinese supermarkets)
1 tsp chilli bean paste
1 clove garlic, minced
1" ginger, minced
1 spring onion - white and green parts separated
A handful of mange tout or sugarsnap peas
1 head of pak choi
A splash of soy sauce
60gr fresh thin ho fun noodles, or the equivalent dried
A few sprigs of coriander
1 lime

In a small saucepan either make up your powdered dashi with 300mls water or simmer your kombu seaweed for 15 minutes. Take off the heat and throw in the bonito flakes.

Meanwhile, set another saucepan on to boil. Slice the pak choi down the middle to halve it, and add to the simmering water. Simmer for 2 minutes, then add the mange tout and noodles (if fresh) for 1 min. Take off the heat and drain, adding it to your bowl.

Drain your soup stock into a recepticle. Heat some oil in a saucepan and add the ginger and garlic. Fry slowly until fragrant, and then add the white part of the spring onion, chopped. Next in goes the chilli bean paste, and after a good 2 or so minutes worth of frying, add the soup stock. Simmer for 5 mins, then turn the heat down and add the miso, stirring well. Slide in the chunks of fish and poach on a very low heat for 5 minutes. Add the noodles and veg back into the saucepan to warm it up, and serve immediately. Add soy sauce to taste and garnish with chopped coriander, sliced green parts of the spring onion and squeeze the lime over it.