Kakitama-jiru (Egg Drop Soup) (Elementary School Portion)
【小学校】かきたま汁 · Kakitama-jiru
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese elementary school lunch menu
Kakitama-jiru is a gentle Japanese egg drop soup: dashi stock lightly thickened with potato starch, then swirled with beaten egg so it sets into soft, wispy ribbons. Carrot, green onion, silken tofu and spinach add color and make it a proper vegetable soup, not just a broth. Children love the silky, slightly thick texture, and the starch keeps the egg floating evenly so every bowl gets its share. This is the elementary school version from our school lunch menu, seasoned simply with soy sauce and a little salt.
Wheat-free, but uses soy sauce (made with wheat). Japanese school-lunch allergy menus usually allow it, so check with your doctor. How to read the labels
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese elementary school, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 10.2 gcarrot
- 10.2 ggreen onion (naga negi)Japanese long onion, thicker and milder than Western scallions. Substitute: Scallions or the white part of a leek.
- 29.9 gsilken tofu
- 22.2 gegg
- 12.1 gfrozen spinach
- 222 gdashi stockJapanese soup stock, usually made from kombu (dried kelp) and/or bonito flakes; the base of most Japanese soups and simmered dishes. Substitute: Instant dashi granules dissolved in water, or a mild unsalted chicken or vegetable stock.
- 2.8 gwater
Seasonings
- 2.8 gsoy sauce
- 0.5 gsalt
- 1 gpotato starch (katakuriko)Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness.
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- green onion (naga negi) (ねぎ)
- Japanese long onion, thicker and milder than Western scallions. Substitute: Scallions or the white part of a leek.
- dashi stock (だし汁)
- Japanese soup stock, usually made from kombu (dried kelp) and/or bonito flakes; the base of most Japanese soups and simmered dishes. Substitute: Instant dashi granules dissolved in water, or a mild unsalted chicken or vegetable stock.
- potato starch (katakuriko) (かたくり粉)
- Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness. Read the guide: Katakuriko (Japanese Potato Starch) and What to Use Instead → Guide: japanese-school-lunch.com/articles/katakuriko-potato-starch/
Directions
- 1
Cut the carrot into thin matchsticks and thinly slice the green onion crosswise into small rounds.
- 2
Cut the tofu into 1.5 cm cubes. Crack the egg into a bowl and beat it thoroughly, cutting through the whites so they are completely broken up.
- 3
Make the dashi stock in a pot, add the carrot and green onion, and simmer over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes.
- 4
Add the soy sauce, salt, tofu and frozen spinach, and simmer briefly, just until the frozen spinach is heated through.
- 5
Turn off the heat for a moment, then stir in the potato starch dissolved in the water. Return the pot to low heat and, once it comes to a gentle boil, pour in the beaten egg slowly, a little at a time, letting it trickle down a pair of chopsticks into the soup.
- 6
Wait a breath or two, then gently stir the whole pot once with a ladle.
* About the simmering time in step 3: 10 minutes leaves a little texture in the vegetables, while 15 minutes makes them fully soft. Adjust to your liking.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 66.6 kcal | 133.2 kcal | 66.6 kcal |
| Protein | 5.6 g | 11.1 g | 5.6 g |
| Fat | 3.2 g | 6.3 g | 3.2 g |
| Carbohydrates | 4.7 g | 9.3 g | 4.7 g |
| Fiber | 1.2 g | 2.4 g | 1.2 g |
| Salt equivalent | 1.2 g | 2.4 g | 1.2 g |
| Calcium | 57.6 mg | 115.2 mg | 57.6 mg |
| Iron | 0.8 mg | 1.5 mg | 0.8 mg |
| Potassium | 305.3 mg | 610.5 mg | 305.3 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 66.6 kcal | 5.6 g | 3.2 g | 4.7 g | 1.2 g | 1.2 g | 57.6 mg | 0.8 mg | 305.3 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 133.2 kcal | 11.1 g | 6.3 g | 9.3 g | 2.4 g | 2.4 g | 115.2 mg | 1.5 mg | 610.5 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese elementary-school portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
This is the elementary-school portion of Kakitama-jiru (Japanese Egg Drop Soup) (larger quantities, same method).
