About the Recipe
I hesitate to make any patriotic claims in these politically correct times, but I can say with no hesitation that the Japanese sweet potato is the best there is - it's sweet and perfect for simmering and roasting. Roast sweet potato, "yaki-imo" as the Japanese call it, is also one of the country's best loved street foods although sadly, autumn evenings when the "yaki imo man" walks around your neighbourhood crying out his wares, grow rarer and rarer. Another great way to use sweet potato is in a miso soup like I do here. You'll notice that in the ingredients, I use a dashi stock bag instead of making my own stock. In quality terms, stock bags sit between making your own stock on the one hand and using instant stock granules on the other, so I use them quite regularly when I don't have the time or inclination to make my own but want a superior flavour. You can buy these stock bags online and they make a very presentable stock.
Ingredients
1 litre premium dashi stock
2.5 tbsps japanese white miso
300g soft tofu, diced into cubes
2 spring onions, finely chopped
Preparation
put the stock and the tofu in a saucepan
bring to the boil and simmer for 3 mins
place the miso into a ladle and put the ladle into the soup. using a spoon, dissolve the miso into the stock (this techniques prevents breaking up the tofu as you dissolve the miso)
once the miso is dissolved, your miso soup is ready to serve. just add the chopped spring onions