Zosui (Japanese Rice Soup)

Zosui is a comforting Japanese rice soup cooked in a savory dashi broth with vegetables, eggs, mushrooms, and sometimes meat or seafood. It's a nourishing meal that helps refuel your energy. With pantry ready ingredients, you can easily make it in no time!

Ingredients

• 3 cups dashi (Japanese soup stock)
• 2 tsp usukuchi (light-colored) soy sauce ((or regular soy sauce))
• ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• 6 oz boneless, skinless chicken thighs ((could be 1–2 pieces depending on the size))
• 1 inch carrot ((1.4 oz, 40 g))
• 2 shiitake mushrooms ((2.8 oz, 80 g))
• 2 green onions/scallions
• 1½ cups cooked Japanese short-grain rice
• 1 large egg (50 g each w/o shell)
• ½ tsp toasted white sesame seeds
• ⅛ tsp white pepper powder

Instructions

0. Gather all the ingredients.
1. To Prepare the Dashi
2. In a large pot (I used a donabe), add 3 cups dashi (Japanese soup stock). If you are making dashi from scratch, here’s the directions. In this recipe, I show you how to make dashi using a dashi packet. Add 3 cups water and 1 dashi packet to the donabe.
3. Cover the lid and slowly bring water to boil on low heat. After a few minutes, open the lid and shake the bag to release more flavors.
4. Close the lid and continue to heat the broth. Once boiling, cook for 3 minutes and discard the dashi packet. Keep the lid closed and set aside.
5. To Prepare the Ingredients
6. Remove the excess fat from 6 oz boneless, skinless chicken thighs and cut it into small bite-sized pieces.
7. Discard the tough stem of 2 shiitake mushrooms and thinly slice the caps.
8. Cut 1 inch carrot into quarters lengthwise and thinly slice them.
9. Cut 2 green onions/scallions into thin pieces and put them in a small bowl. We use them as a garnish at the end.
10. Measure 1½ cups cooked Japanese short-grain rice. If you’re using cold cooked rice, put it in a fine-mesh sieve and rinse the rice under running water to remove excess starch. Shake and drain well. If you’re using freshly made rice, you can skip this process.
11. To Cook Zosui
12. In a hot dashi broth, add the chicken.
13. Close the lid and bring it to boil on medium-low heat. Once boiling, skim the scum and foam on the surface.
14. Add the carrot and cook covered until tender, about 4–5 minutes.
15. Once the carrot is tender, add 2 tsp usukuchi (light-colored) soy sauce and ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt to the broth.
16. Add the shiitake mushrooms and well-drained cooked rice. Cover to cook for 10 minutes.
17. Beat 1 large egg (50 g each w/o shell) in a bowl.
18. Slowly drizzle a small amount of the beaten egg over the soup surface, which will create a fluffy texture.
19. Add some of the green onion and ½ tsp toasted white sesame seeds. Sprinkle ⅛ tsp white pepper powder at the end.
20. Cover with the lid and bring the pot to the table to serve into individual bowls.