Ever since I discovered Thai chili jam, I've been obsessed. I never had a sweet and savory jam quite like this before. After preparing a Thai chili shrimp salad recipe, I was anxious to create another dish using this special ingredient. This time, I decided to use it as a more subtle flavor component. Combine it with miso and suddenly you have the most delicious spicy miso noodle soup. Plus, this dish comes together in a cinch. Easy and delicious weeknight meal? Yes, please!
Spicy Miso Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- ½ lb ground chicken
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 4 scallions chopped whites and green separated
- 1 Thai chile chopped
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 3 ounces sliced cremini mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon Thai chili jam
- 2 tablespoons miso
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- 4 baby bok choy halved
- 6 ounces dried flour noodles
- 2 tablespoons chopped Thai basil
- 2 fried eggs
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add ground chicken and cook until browned, breaking up meat into small chunks with a wooden spoon. Add garlic, ginger, white ends of scallions, Thai chile, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar. Stir to combine and simmer for 1 minute.
- Add chicken broth and sliced mushrooms. Cover pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add Thai chili jam, miso, and mirin, stirring to dissolve miso paste. Add halved bok choy and simmer for another 5 minutes or until bok choy is tender.
- Meanwhile, cook noodles according to directions on package. Drain and portion noodles into 2 bowls. Ladle soup into bowls and top with Thai basil, chopped green scallions, and fried eggs. Serve immediately.
**Helpful tips and common mistakes
What's great about this spicy miso noodle soup is how surprisingly easy it is and yet how flavorful it is. Slow-simmered broths are truly wonderful but sometimes you just want something quick. And this is where this noodle soup comes to the rescue.
I chose ground chicken for my protein but you can swap it for ground beef, ground pork, ground turkey, or even minced tofu. Whatever protein you do use, make sure to still follow the same seasoning mix.
The seasoning not only flavors the chicken but also flavors the broth. If you want to keep the noodle soup mild, you can omit the Thai chile.
Simmer the meat for 1 minute and add the chicken broth to the pot along with sliced mushrooms. If you're not a fan of mushrooms, you can substitute them with another vegetable. Zucchini, cabbage, carrots, use one, or go crazy and use them all.
Let the broth simmer for 10 minutes, allowing all of the flavors to meld together. Then, season the soup with Thai chili, miso, and mirin.
I used storebought Thai chili jam but if you can't find it, you can also make it yourself. You'll need tamarind paste, dried chilies, shrimp paste, and palm sugar, among several other ingredients. Yes, it takes a bit of work but the plus side is that you can control the heat level.
Add halved baby bok choy to the soup and simmer for another few minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
Meanwhile, cook the noodles. You can use almost any type of noodle including but not limited to udon noodles, ramen noodles, and egg noodles.
Portion the noodles into bowls and pour the hot broth on top. Place a fried egg on top and garnish with scallions and Thai basil.
Give someone a bowl of this spicy miso noodle soup and they may not guess that there's Thai chili jam in there. But it sure does add a ton of flavor. Combine it with miso and the seasoned ground chicken and you have one delicious dinner!
For more Asian noodle soup inspiration check out this Chinese braised beef stew noodles recipe!
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