I took one of my favorite soup recipes – Yukari’s Miso Ramen – and turned it into a speedy soup you can throw together in minutes, so long as you have some leftover cooked meat and veggies on hand! All you have to do is make a quick creamy broth using tomato paste, almond butter, and miso. Then simply add your meat and veggies until heated through. Serve with noodles (or not) and top with herbs and lime for a cozy, comforting soup!
P.S. This recipe is designed to use up Thanksgiving leftover turkey and veggies.
If you don’t have leftovers, simply roast a full sheet pan of veggies (about 7 cups worth) and roast a 5 lb chicken (5 lb whole chicken will give you about 4-5 cups meat). Or you can cook boneless chicken – 2.5-3lbs will give you 4-5 cups of meat. That will be enough to use for multiple meals.
If you’re in a pinch with the meat and veggies, simply cook ground meat in the skillet. Then remove and follow the recipe (see note on using raw veggies).
Ingredient highlight
Miso paste! Miso means “fermented beans” in Japanese and is typically made using fermented soy beans and/or grains. It packs in lots of umami-rich flavor, making it great for dressings, sauces, soups, and marinades. It’s also rich in probiotics, B vitamins, vitamin E, vitamin K, and folate.
You can find mellow white miso paste at most grocery stores in the refrigerated section near other fermented foods (kimchi, sauerkraut, etc…).
Servings 4
Prep Time 5 minutes 
Cook Time 8 minutes Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp grated ginger
- 1-2 tsp gochujang or other chile paste*
- 4 cups water
- ⅓ cup almond butter or tahini
- ¼ cup mellow white miso paste
- 1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
- 1 tsp maple syrup or sugar
- 2 cups chopped cooked veggies**
- 2 cups shredded or chopped cooked protein (turkey, chicken, etc…)***
- 2-3 cups thinly sliced kale or other leafy green (optional)
- Cooked noodles or rice, for serving****
- Cilantro or scallions, for topping
- Lime wedges, for topping
- *The gochujang adds spice and flavor. Feel free to skip it or replace it with another chili paste or sriracha.
- **This recipe was designed to use leftover cooked veggies. If you only have raw veggies, chop them small and simmer in the broth (covered) until cooked, then add the meat + follow the recipe as is.
- ***If you don’t have any cooked protein, you could cook up some ground meat before anything else, transfer to a bowl and add it in later.
- ****I like this best with cooked rice noodles. If you have a good amount of starchy veggies in the soup, then you could skip the noodles/rice to make it a lighter meal.
Instructions
- Cook your noodles (or rice).
- In a medium pot over medium heat, warm the oil. Add the tomato paste, ginger, and gochujang and stir to combine. Cook until the tomato paste is caramelized and sticking to the bottom of the pot, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the water, scraping up any tomato paste stuck to the bottom of the pot. Bring to a simmer, then transfer about 1 cup of broth into a medium bowl or large liquid measuring cup. To the pot, add your cooked veggies and protein and bring to a simmer to warm it up. Once it begins to simmer, stir in the greens until wilted (if using).
- Meanwhile, to the reserved hot broth, add the almond butter and whisk until combined and smooth. Add the miso paste and mix/mash it up until combined and few lumps remain.
- Turn the heat to the lowest setting and stir the almond miso mixture along with the soy sauce and sweetener. Turn off the heat. If the broth is too thick, add water until it’s reached a consistency that you like.
- Serve over warm noodles or rice and top with herbs and a generous squeeze of lime.
Items you can prep ahead (optional)
- Grate 1 tbsp ginger
- Make the broth
- Thinly slice 2-3 cups kale (if using)
- Make the soup
- Cook noodles (if using)
- If you don’t have any leftovers:
- Cook 1-1.5 lbs boneless chicken, then chop it up (this will give you about 2 cups) OR roast a 4-5 lb chicken! You’ll have leftover meat that you can use in other recipes (see Sticky Soy Turkey Lettuce Cups).
Substitutions:
- To make vegetarian, substitute 2 cups worth of chopped tofu.
- Use any leftover cooked meat – just chop or shred into bite sized pieces.
Storage:
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2-4 days or freeze for up to 2 months.
Leftovers + Repurposing:
- Warm the soup up in a pot or in the microwave until warmed through. The soup tends to thicken, so you can thin it out with some water, if you’d like. Serve with noodles (if using) and toppings.
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