New Year's Mochi Soup Recipe

Jan 25 2023

White Saikyo miso ozoni with carrots, daikon, and mochi rice cake is a Japanese New Year's soup that originates from the Kyoto region of Japan.

Ingredients

For Homemade Dashi:
4 ½
cups dashi broth (for Quick Dashi, use Either Homemade or Quick Recipe)
4 ½
cups water
2
" x 2" dried dashi konbu
½
teaspoon dried konbu dashi powder
Add-Ins:
2
to 3-inch piece of Japanese daikon radish
3
-inch carrot
1
handful of mizuna Japanese vegetable (or substitute with other mild flavored green leafy vegetable: komatsuna, spinach, etc.)
2
sato imo (taro root)
4
slices of red kamaboko (actual color is pink)
3
to 4 tablespoons of Saikyo white miso to taste
4
pieces of mochi rice cake (one per person)
Optional garnish: dried bonito shavings (katsuo bushi)

Step 1
Choose which method you will use to prepare the dashi. For dashi from scratch, follow the recipe on our blog here.
Step 2
If you are making quick dashi, add water in a stock pot and soak the konbu dashi (dried kelp) for 4 to 8 hours. If you do not have time to do this, soak the konbu for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Leave the dashi konbu in the stock pot while the soup cooks.
Step 3
Slice carrots into delicate rounds, and slice daikon into thin rounds, then cut the rounds into halves or quarters, depending on the width of the daikon.
Step 4
If you are using fresh taro root or sato imo, peel the rough skin, then slice into rounds. Sato imo is also available for sale pre-peeled and cut into small balls in the freezer section of some Japanese grocery stores. Feel free to substitute fresh taro with frozen taro.
Step 5
Over medium high heat add dashi, and carrots, daikon, and sato imo (taro root) and bring to a boil. Skim any impurities from the surface of the stock. Over medium-low heat, cook vegetables until they reach desired tenderness.
Step 6
Remove a piece of konbu from the pot and add mizuna leaves.
Step 7
Lastly, add mochi to the pot and cook an additional 2 minutes until tender. Alternatively, make grilled mochi (rice cake), serve soup in small bowls, and garnish soup with a beautiful piece of grilled mochi. Enjoy immediately.