Instant Pot Kabocha Miso Soup

 Instant Pot Kabocha Squash and Miso Soup. This squash soup from Japan is made in my Instant Pot and is ready in about half an hour (once you're done peeling and seeding the squash-that's the hard part). Pressure cook diced squash for 5 minutes with some hondashi, and whisk in soy milk and miso paste. It's a short ingredient list for a great soup.

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• INGREDIENTS
• How to make Instant Pot Kabocha Squash and Miso Soup
• Substitutions
• Tips and tricks
• What to Serve with Kabocha and Miso Soup
• Instant Pot Kabocha Miso Soup Recipe
• Related Posts
• 💬 Comments

Kabocha squash were front and center in the produce section of every grocery store I visited in Japan. What did they use it for, I wondered? Then, the first course of the Izakaya cooking class at Cooking Sun in Kyoto was kabocha and miso soup. That's why it's so popular - it tastes fantastic. I knew I had to make it in my Instant Pot once I got home.

INGREDIENTS

• 3- to 4-pound kabocha squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch chunks
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 cup warm water + ½ teaspoon hondashi (or 1 cup dashi broth or 1 cup vegetable broth)
• ½ cup white miso
• 16 ounces unsweetened soy milk
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• minced green onion for garnish (optional)

How to make Instant Pot Kabocha Squash and Miso Soup

Squash, salt, and hondashi broth into the pot

Peel, seed, and cube the kabocha squash, and put it in an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt. Dissolve the hondashi in 1 cup of warm water, then pour it into the pot over the squash.

Pressure cook for 5 minutes with a 15-minute natural release

Lock the lid and cook on high pressure for 5 minutes (In an Instant Pot, use Manual, Pressure Cook, or Pressure Cook - Custom mode set to 5 minutes.) Let the pressure come down naturally for 15 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.

Smooth out the miso paste

While the squash is cooking, whisk the miso and 1 cup (8oz) of the unsweetened soy milk to smooth out the miso paste. (You can also use an immersion blender.) Make sure the miso is completely blended into the milk with no lumps.

Whisk and serve

Unlock the lid on the pressure cooker, tilting it away from you to avoid the hot steam. Stir and mash the squash with a potato masher or a wooden spoon until it is a smooth puree. (If you want ultra-smooth soup, use an immersion blender). Pour the smoothed miso and the rest of the soy milk into the pot, sprinkle in the fresh ground pepper, and whisk until smooth. (Again, for ultra-smooth soup, use an immersion blender). Ladle into bowls, top each bowl with a pinch of minced green onion (optional), serve, and enjoy!

Substitutions

• Hondashi: Hondashi is instant dashi broth, dried into small grains. If you can't find it, substitute vegetable broth. (I recommend my Instant Pot Vegetable Broth, but store-bought broth is fine).
• Other winter squash: If you can't find kabocha squash, pumpkin is the closest substitute from North America. (Especially if you can find baking pumpkins). Butternut and acorn squash will also work, though the flavors are farther away from kabocha. (That's OK - this is a great squash and miso soup, even with the "wrong" type of squash.)
  Cheating with pre-cut squash: I can find butternut squash pre-peeled and pre-cubed in my local grocery stores. Would anyone know if I used it instead of kabocha squash in this recipe? I'm not sure, but it would still be a great squash and miso soup.
• Kabocha miso soup vegan style: Skip the dashi broth and substitute vegetable broth. (Dashi is made from smoked tuna flakes).

Tips and tricks

What is kabocha squash?

Kabocha squash, also called Japanese pumpkin, can be found in Asian grocery stores. I will also occasionally see them at my farmers market (in the fall, kabocha is a winter squash) or at well-stocked health food stores.

How do you peel kabocha squash?

Carefully. I took the half-squash pieces from the store, seeded them, and then set them flat-side down on my cutting board. I used a vegetable peeler to peel off the skin, getting as much as possible while pinning the squash to the board with my other hand. The peeling goes easier once you're started, and the peeler can get under the rind and start in the flesh of the squash. Once I've peeled as much of the squash as possible while it's flat on the board, I pick it up and peel around the edge.

How do you get rid of miso lumps?

You must smooth out the miso paste before adding it to the soup. I have a dedicated step for this: whisking the miso paste with some of the soy milk is essential.

What to Serve with Kabocha and Miso Soup

Kabocha miso soup is a light soup that is a good starter or appetizer for a Japanese-themed meal. It was one of the courses I learned as part of an izakaya menu; izakaya is a Japanese pub where you get a bunch of small plates spread out over time to balance out your drinks. (Izakaya literally means stay-drink-place.) At a multi-course dinner party, I served it to friends with sushi, Japanese omelets, and panko-fried chicken cutlets.

Inspired by Kabocha squash and miso soup, Cooking Sun cooking school - Kyoto.

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