Instant miso soup is, in my opinion, one of the best-tasting instant soups, and the easiest to pack. There are no noodles to accidentally crush, and the tiny packets take up very little room.

It’s the perfect soup. Ando, now 66, has been living in the United States since 1979 and runs his own restaurant, Benkay, in Portland, Maine. It was there that I had the best miso soup of my life.