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Originally created as a Buddhist temple cuisine, Kenchinjiru (Japanese Vegetable Soup) is a clear soup cooked with root vegetables, tofu, shiitake, and kombu stock. It’s a well balanced, flavorful soup if you’re looking for a meatless meal on a cold night. {vegan}
If you live on the east coast of the US and currently experiencing bone-chilling weather, I thought a nice hot bowl of hearty vegetable soup will warm you up. This soup is called Kenchinjiru (けんちん汁) and it’s a clear soup made with root vegetables and tofu.
What is Kenchinjiru?
Kenjinjiru or sometimes spelled as Kenchin-jiru (“jiru” means soup in Japanese) derived its name “Kenchin” from “Kencho” – the Zen Buddhist temple, Kencho-ji (建長寺) in Kamakura.
The original Kenchinjiru was considered as a shōjin ryōri (精進料理) or traditional Buddhist temple cuisine, which consists of a vegetarian or vegan diet. While most Japanese cooking requires fish-base stock “dashi“, this soup uses kombu and shiitake mushrooms to flavor the soup.
The Key Ingredients in Kenchinjiru
Although you can use any vegetables, the typical ingredients include different kinds of root vegetables. Among them, I feel gobo and daikon are important ingredients to add flavors and textures to the soup. Both ingredients are easily accessible in Asian supermarkets if there aren’t any Japanese grocery stores around you. Both Chinese and Korean cuisines use them so try those grocery stores as well.
When you watch the video or see my step by step pictures, you might wonder why I cut konnyaku with a spoon and tear tofu with my fingers instead of using a knife. I learned these techniques from my mom. When you cut konnyaku with a spoon, it increases more surface area which creates a higher rate of absorption. The same thing goes with tofu. By creating more surface areas for tofu, it absorbs more flavors as well. Using the same logic, I stir fry tofu a little bit in sesame oil to get a nice coating on them.
Other Variations of Kenchinjiru
Originally, the soup is a clear soup made with soy sauce; however, you can also make it with miso, especially if you prefer a bolder flavor for your soup.
Of course, you can add chicken or pork as well. Although I love Tonjiru, a miso soup with pork and vegetable and it’s my favorite kind of miso soup, I like my Kenchinjiru to be very simple with just vegetables without meat. Despite being a vegetarian soup, it is full of flavors from all the vegetables and dashi. There are crunchy root vegetables like gobo, daikon, and carrot, and soft and tender satoimo (taro). Lastly, shiitake mushrooms and tofu suck up all the flavors from the soup and you get to enjoy the delicate flavors as you bite into them.
This hearty soup has plenty of flavors going on, just like a stew. I hope you enjoy this soup!
If you are interested in other healthy Japanese recipes, check out 12 Easy & Healthy Japanese Recipes.
Watch How To Make Kenchinjiru
Flavorful vegan soup created originally as a Buddhist temple cuisine (精進料理) with root vegetables and shiitake and kombu stock.
Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want to look for substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.
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- 1 kombu (dried kelp) (1 kombu = 4” x 4” or 10 cm x 10 cm)
- 5 cups water (5 cups = 1200 ml) (for kombu)
- 3 dried shiitake mushrooms
- 1 cup water (1 cup = 240 ml) (for shiitake)
- 7 oz firm tofu (7 oz = 200 g)
- ½ package konnyaku (konjac) (½ package = 130 g or 4.6 oz)
- 2 inch daikon radish (2" = 200 g or 7 oz)
- 1 carrot (1 carrot = 100 g or 3.5 oz)
- 3 Taro (Satoimo)
- ½ gobo (burdock root) (½ gobo = 100 g or 3.5 oz)
- 2 green onions/scallions
- shichimi togarashi (Japanese seven spice) (optional)
- Japanese sansho pepper (optional)
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil (roasted)
- 3 Tbsp sake
- ½ tsp kosher/sea salt (I use Diamond Crystal; Use half for table salt)
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
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Gather all the ingredients.
- Previous Night: Clean kombu with damp towel (paper towel). NEVER wash kombu and do not remove the white powder (that’s where the umami flavor comes from!). Soak kombu in 5 cups of water overnight. If you don’t have time, skip soaking.
- Slowly bring the kombu water to a boil. Right before the water boils, remove and discard the kombu. Turn off the heat and set aside.
- Put dried shiitake mushrooms in a small bowl and cover with water. Place a smaller bowl on top to make sure mushrooms are submerged.
- Wrap the tofu with paper towel and place it on a plate. Put another plate on top of tofu to press the tofu, drain for 30 minutes.
- Cut konnyaku into bite size pieces. You can use a spoon to cut konnyaku. By giving konnyaku uneven texture, the surface will absorb more flavor. Then boil for 2-3 minutes to get rid of odor. Drain the water and set aside.
- Peel and cut daikon, carrot, and satoimo (taro) into slices. For daikon and carrot, I slice them thinly so it will take less time to cook. For satoimo, I cut into about ¼” (6 mm) slices and soak in water to get rid of slimy texture.
- Scrape the gobo skin with the back of a knife under running water. Cut in half lengthwise and slice thinly. Soak in water for 5 minutes and rain.
- When shiitake mushrooms are soft and hydrated, squeeze the liquid out and set the mushrooms aside. Strain the shiitake dashi into finely meshed sieve to get rid of particles and set aside.
- Remove and discard the stem of shiitake mushrooms and cut into quarters.
- Heat a large pot and add sesame oil. Sauté daikon, carrot, satoimo (taro), gobo (burdock root) and konnyaku until the oil coats the ingredients.
- Then add shiitake mushrooms. Tear tofu with your fingers and add into the pot (If you are using silken tofu, use a knife to cut and add it right before serving). Tofu will absorb more flavor when it is torn by hands. Saute until all the ingredients are coated with the oil.
- Add the shiitake dashi and kombu dashi and bring it to a boil.
- Turn down the heat to simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, skimming occasionally. Use a fine strainer/skimmer to skim off the foam on the surface. I fill water in a measuring cup and clean the strainer in it. Exchange the water if it’s gets too dirty.
- After 10 minutes, add sake and salt and continue to cook until the vegetables are all tender. Finally add the soy sauce.
- Right before serving, cut the scallion. Serve the soup and garnish with scallion. Sprinkle Shichimi Togarashi and Sansho Pepper, if you like it spicy.
Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe in your own words and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.
Wow! This looks so wonderful! I have never tried with clear soy based soup! I definitely am going to try this recipe this weekend. As always, love love love your video!
Aiko
Hi Aiko! It’s really good and it is a nice break from regular miso soup. I hope you give it a try! Thanks so much for watching my video! xo
Oh Nami – this simple clear soup so attracts . . . [smiling] since I have slowly turned Buddhist myself over the last decade, it also seems a most appropriate recipe to add to my folder! But most of all thanks for that fabulous tip about tearing tofu with one’s fingers: eat a lot of the stuff but this is the first I have heard of the practice and it does make sense!!!!
Hi Eha! I’m glad to hear you like this recipe! This will be a fabulous recipe when the weather gets colder (meanwhile enjoy the nice summer weather!). 🙂 We break tofu with hands in some recipes, and we don’t do that all the time (and only works for firm tofu). Hope you give it a try! 🙂
Soup looks amazing! I have been looking for vegan soup recipes, I can’t wait to make it. Thanks & love your blog!
Hi Anne! What a great timing! So glad to hear you like this recipe and I hope you enjoy! Thank you very much for following my blog! 🙂 xo
OMG, the camera view and the way you make this soup with the background music makes it feel so warm!!! Such a good job Nami!
Aww thank you so much for your kind compliment! We always find something we need to improve from our videos every time. But I’m glad to hear you enjoy our videos! Thank you!!!
hi nami,
can i use doenjang paste as miso subtitution? is it same?. thank you
Hi Riska! Unfortunately, it’s not the same as Japanese miso, but if you like doenjang and love the flavor, maybe you might enjoy it? 🙂
Thank you for the recipe …. I will surely try it …. it looks delicious and healthy
Thank you very much Froilan! Hope you enjoy this recipe! 🙂
This looks so nutritious, and losts of umami. I will try this soon since I’m making Nishime, and lot of the ingredients are used in this recipe also.
Hi Jane! That’s true! Lots of root vegetables. Hope you enjoy this recipe. 🙂
Hi Nami,
Thanks for the recipe, I’m trying the recipe now and it looks delicious. By the way I’m wondering what you will do with the cooked kombu. It seems such a waste to throw it away – do you have any recipes to cook the kombu itself or any suggestions on what to do with it?
Thank you,
Tania
Hi Tania! I use cooked kombu (if I have time) to make furikake:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/how_to/homemade-furikake-rice-seasonings/
Some people simmer in soy sauce and mirin, (sake and sugar) to make kombu really soft and flavorful and eat it with rice. It’s more like to enjoy the texture and flavor. Hope this helps!
I made this soup tonight, and my husband and I agree that this soup should be in our weekly rotation. Thank you Nami for sharing the recipe.
Hi Gwen! Yay! So happy to hear you two enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for trying it and writing your kind feedback. 🙂 xo
is it okay if i not use sake?
Hi Yenni! If you don’t consume alcohol, I guess there is no choice and you’ll have to replace it with water.
If you can drink alcohol, I still recommend to use sake because it has nice umami in sake (from rice). You can sub with dry sherry or Chinese rice wine, if you can’t find sake locally. 🙂
Did you slice the mushrooms smaller after quartering them? And can you give us an approximate measurement for 1 taro? I can’t find them fresh so I use the frozen boiled taro balls cut up but I don’t know if I added the right amount. Thanks!
Hi Nicole! No slicing, just quarters. 1 Taro is usually about 2 to 2.5 inches. Hope that helps! 🙂
If you want, you can swap the salt for 1 1/2 tbsp of miso paste! It works wonders. Love your recipe Nami!
Hi Cassandra! Thank you for sharing your tip and for your kind words! xo
Can i substitute satoimo with nagaimo in this recipe?
Hi Niss! Sure! Remember that Nagaimo’s texture is different so it’s more like a new addition to the soup, instead of a substitute. 🙂
Hello, Nami,
Hope your shoulder is better. I made this recipe, added lotus root & bamboo shoots :). It was very tasty. However, when boiling the konyaku (as suggested-very worthwhile) something unexpected happened: my new aluminum pan turned VERY dark where the water had been. Please–is there a way to remove the darkness in my pan? Will it effect food if it stays dark? I’m afraid to cook with this brand new pan:(. I would be most grateful for any advice re: the darkened pan.
With kindness & respect,
Frances
Hi Frances! Thanks so much for trying my recipe, and I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Now about your brand new pan!!! I just googled and found out that konnyaku uses alkaline as a coagulant. When alkaline food is cooked in an aluminum pan, the aluminum reacts and aluminum hydroxide adheres, and the calcium and other minerals contained in the aluminum hydroxide become fixed (?), which darkens the pan.
To solve this issue, put water in the saucepan, add vinegar and boil. Or simmer apple peels and core. Or brush the pan with lemon flesh (cut in half and brush). You make a tomato dish in the pot. Or boil water and citric acid. It’ll go back to the brand new pot! 🙂
Hi Nami,
Do you have any recommendations for replacing Burdock root? I cannot find it where I live..
Thanks!
Hi Jeannie! Burdock root is a very unique root vegetable with texture and taste, so there is no good substitute to replace that. However, if you have any other good root vegetables, let’s say lotus root, etc, it would be okay to add. Otherwise, you can skip. 🙂
This soup was so comforting! Reminded me of soups my mom made when I was young. Thank you so much; this will be a keeper for me. With the togarashi, it was perfect!
Hi Dorothy,
Aww… we are so happy to hear it tasted like your mom’s homemade soup, and you enjoyed it.
Thank you very much for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback!