Miso as an ingredient

[torakris]

JasonTrue's latest picture of a nagaimo dengaku (in the nagaimo thread) reminded me that I suck at making miso based sauces.....

I have tried various recipes for things like dengaku and nikumiso but I have never been really satisfied with the taste, I have yet to find one that I would like to make again.

Anyone have any killer recipes for miso based sauces?

[BarbaraY]

I love miso sauces. They are rarely found in American Japanese restaurants.

I made one recently that we enjoyed on green beans:

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons dashi stock or water

1 1/2 teaspoon red miso

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Grind sesame seeds and stir in remaining ingredients.

Good with lightly cooked asparagus, too.

[ComeUndone]

My recent copy of Orange Page has an extra booklet that makes 24 different dishes using one basic miso sauce recipe.

The master recipe is:

3 tbsp miso

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp sake

1 tbsp mirin

They used this master recipe in three different types of application: dissolve in nimono/stew, mixed into finely chopped ingredients as a sauce , or as a marinate/spread for grilling. So versatile!!

[helenjp]

Quality of the miso - it's important! I've never had good results from miso sauces or marinades made using really cheap miso that hasn't been fermented longer than 3 months.

Mixed miso - a lot of older recipes for dengaku or other toppings/dips specify "sakura miso" (mostly aka-miso/hatcho miso with a small proportion of sweet white miso mixed in) or other mixed miso (awase-miso). Awase miso is not just mixing sweeter/milder with saltier miso, usually people choose a bean or barley miso and mix it with a rice-based miso.

Letting sauces mature. Can't figure out a really good reason for this, but miso-dare (miso dips) seem to mature and improve if left for a day or so before using.

Sugar content - higher than you'd expect. The recipes below both work out to VERY ROUGHLY 1 part or less sweet stuff (sugar, sake, mirin) to 2 parts miso or salty stuff, and not more than 1 part liquid such as water or dashi. However, I've seen recipes in older more classical books which are closer to 1:1.

I prefer to use mirin or nikiri mirin (mirin with alcohol evaporated) more than sugar, but it's certainly cheaper to use sugar.

Try this name-miso as a topping for dengaku etc.:

1/2 c (Japanese cup) of mixed miso of your choice

1 tab sugar

2 tab mirin

3 tab sake

4-5 tab dashi

If you want to add sesame seeds, peanuts, walnuts etc., grind them in a small mortar first then add the miso and grind them together for a bit before adding the rest.

Rich dengaku miso (use on shellfish or fish which are to be very quickly grilled, for example)

200g miso (equal parts of mild and salty miso)

1 tab sugar

3 tab each mirin and sake

2 egg yolks

Little bonito dashi if needed to soften miso.

Mix miso and sweeteners in a pan and stir over low heat till smooth and starting to bubble. Cool thoroughly and add 2 egg yolks, mixing in well. Add a little dashi if the miso is still too stiff.

The proportions of egg to miso are about right here, but you can adjust the sweeteners considerably - down to 1 tab each of mirin and sake if you prefer.

Miso itself varies so much in sweetness and saltiness that you should really taste and adjust sweetness to suit your own preferences.

Don't forget to use more sugar etc if you want a thinner "sauce" rather than a paste.

[JasonTrue]

Gaku Homma's dengaku sometimes includes egg yolks, and he basically uses a 4:1:1:1 ratio for everything else; 4 miso, 1 sugar, 1 mirin, 1 dashi (and up to one egg yolk, though I rarely use it).

I'm not sure what the secret is either, as I've had spectacular and not-so-spectacular results. The better ones result when I'm paying attention to the sauce as it bubbles.

It does need to cool enough that you can see what's happening with it. If you're not careful and attentive, it becomes candy, either when cooking the sauce or when broiling.

I also emphasize good mirin and good miso.

I try not to forget that I just set something under the broiler...

[helenjp]

I try not to forget that I just set something under the broiler...

Gosh, wonder what encouraged you to do that?!

[torakris]

Miso itself varies so much in sweetness and saltiness that you should really taste and adjust sweetness to suit your own preferences.

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There is where my biggest problem come in.

Not only does miso run the gamut from super sweet white to super salty red but even the all purpose brown one can be wildly different.

Most recipes just say miso, not specifying a type but I am sure the proportions would be quite different if you used a white miso instead of red.

I am going to give some of these recipes a try.

[torakris]

Cold tofu with wakame and cucumbers in a su miso dressing, I have added the Su-miso dressing to RecipeGullet.

[Cookwithlove]

May I know how to use miso to marinate says a fish of how to concote a recipe for a miso vinaigrette for salad or rather how does miso enhances or compliment a dish(please correct if I am wrong)?

Thanks

[JasonTrue]

I don't think you need to marinate fish in miso... you can just split open the fish and rub some miso paste inside, and stuff with a bit of scallion (long, or chopped) to get flavor from miso's salt. Then just grill.

Miso in a salad dressing... if you like, you can use a teaspoon of miso, a tablespoon or two of vinegar, and whisk while slowly adding oil to emulsify; add black pepper and minced or finely chopped onion. Perhaps a drop of sesame oil, and sugar or honey to taste.

May I know how to use miso to marinate says a fish of how to concote a recipe for a miso vinaigrette for salad or rather how does miso enhances or compliment a dish(please correct if I am wrong)?

Thanks

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[srhcb]

Miso in a salad dressing... if you like, you can use a teaspoon of miso, a tablespoon or two of vinegar, and whisk while slowly adding oil to emulsify; add black pepper and minced or finely chopped onion. Perhaps a drop of sesame oil, and sugar or honey to taste.

I've never used miso before, but just got some as a gift.

The salad dressing idea is a good one! I will try that.

I was wondering about maybe rubbing it into a pot roast after browning but before braising?

SB (with miso en place )

[Hiroyuki]

Fish marinated in miso is quite popular here. Simply mix miso with other ingredients such as mirin, sake, and sugar, and put fillets of fish in the mixture for one day or two.

In normal Japanese homes, miso is mostly used to make miso soup, and sometimes in nabe (one-pot dishes) and to make stir-fries such as fuki miso (butterbur sprouts stir-fried with miso) and nasu miso (eggplant stir-fried with miso).

When I have certain types of sansai (edible wild plants), I sometimes make a 1:1 mixture of miso and mayo as a dipping sauce.

[srhcb]

I was wondering about maybe rubbing it into a pot roast after browning but before braising?

SB (with miso en place )

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I tried it yesterday!

MISO POT ROAST

Get a 3.25 - 3.5 pound chunk of Chuck

Trim off all fat and make sure meat fits in your 5 qt Dutch Oven

Brown it well on all sides

Deglaze pot (I use 1tsp balsamic vinegar/2 tsp grape juice/3 tsp water mix)

Place 3-4 stalks of celery, a chopped up carrot and a chopped up onion in pot

Rub browned Chuck with a Tablespoon or so of Miso Paste

Set Chuck atop vegetables, cover loosely with a piece of foil

Cook in a 250 degree oven for about 3 hrs

Let Roast rest 10-15 minutes before slicing

Strain broth (there should be at least 1 cup) and either use as au juice or make a gravy

Simple. Tasty!

SB (and I have enough beef and broth left for French Dip Sandwiches tomorrow )

[shinju]

Hi Cookwithlove - if you like to explore miso and different ways of using miso I would highly recommend "The Book of Miso" by William Shurtleff and Akiko Aoyagi. Fab book - one of my favorite! It was published in 1976 and may be hard to come by, check different sources.

[BarbaraY]

Hi Cookwithlove - if you like to explore miso and  different ways of using miso I would highly recommend "The Book of Miso" by William Shurtleff and Akiko Aoyagi.  Fab book - one of my favorite!  It was published in 1976 and may be hard to come by, check different sources.

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I have had "The Book of Miso" for many years and it's falling apart. Lots of suggestions for both Japanese and Western food.

I have cod marinating in miso for my dinner. I sometimes spread it on Salmon just before it finishes broiling. Delicious!

[stephle]

On the topic of miso, my favorite Japanese restaurant does an amazing Miso beef dish. It's thinly sliced beef like for gyudon but has miso in the mix -- does anyone has a recipe or an idea of how this might be made? I've tried various combo's to no avail thanks in advance, steph.

[Hiroyuki]

On the topic of miso, my favorite Japanese restaurant does an amazing Miso beef dish.  It's thinly sliced beef like for gyudon but has miso in the mix -- does anyone has a recipe or an idea of how this might be made?  I've tried various combo's to no avail   thanks in advance, steph.

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Is it some kind of shoga yaki

Lots of photos can be found here

It's usually made with soy sauce and mirin (and sake), but some people add miso as well.

Or, is it soupy like gyudon?

[BarbaraY]

I marinated a piece of cod in miso a couple of days ago. Most recipes say it can marinate for a couple of days. Not a good plan for my little piece of fish. It was way too salty after two days but I ate it anyway. Will try it again another time but won't leave it in the marinade so long. Live and learn.

Edited June 15, 2007 by BarbaraY (log)

[Hiroyuki]

I marinated a piece of cod in miso a couple of days ago. Most recipes say it can marinate for a couple of days. Not a good plan for my little piece of fish. It was way too salty after two days but I ate it anyway. Will try it again another time but won't leave it in the marinade so long. Live and learn.

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Could you tell us about the ingredients of your marinade? Miso, sake, and mirin?

[BarbaraY]

Just miso and sake. Maybe I should have added mirin too.

[EdS]

I'd suggest using saikyo miso if you weren't already as it's less salty. It's what I use and I marinate two or even three days without excess saltiness.

Edited June 16, 2007 by EdS (log)

[BarbaraY]

Thanks Ed. Will see if the company I order from has it. I did use a white miso, shinshu honzukori.

[shinju]

I marinated a piece of cod in miso a couple of days ago. Most recipes say it can marinate for a couple of days. Not a good plan for my little piece of fish. It was way too salty after two days but I ate it anyway. Will try it again another time but won't leave it in the marinade so long. Live and learn.

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Hi Barbara - the proportion for I use is for 4 small pieces of fish:

500 gram white miso (preferably saikyo)

1/2 cup mirin

2 T sugar

Mix miso, mirin, and sugar. Marinate fish in mixture for for 1 night only.

Another marianated miso dish I love is miso marinated tofu. It tastes like fine cheese. My mother hated it when I first served it to her (she doesn't quite like stinky cheese either).

[Hiroyuki]

http://bv-bb.net/bonvivant/cooking/recipe_02.html (Japanese only)

You can watch how a professional chef makes a marinade by clicking 映像を見る ->, in white letters in red background, located at the bottom of the above webpage. The Bon vivant instructor, an inn owner/chef, uses a regular (apparently red) miso. He says, "A less salty one is better." His secret ingredient is sake lees, and he adds a large amount of sugar. He also adds a 1:1 mixture of sake and mirin (previously heated to evaporate alcohol). No exact amounts of the igredients are indicated.

He later adds, near the end of the video, "Saikyo miso is very sweet, and it's a little too expensive for "oyaji ryori" (middled-aged men's cooking)." That's why he uses a regular miso and adds mirin and sugar.

[shinju]

http://bv-bb.net/bonvivant/cooking/recipe_02.html (Japanese only)

You can watch how a professional chef makes a marinade by clicking 映像を見る ->, in white letters in red background, located at the bottom of the above webpage.  The Bon vivant instructor, an inn owner/chef, uses a regular (apparently red) miso.  He says, "A less salty one is better."  His secret ingredient is sake lees, and he adds a large amount of sugar.  He also adds a 1:1 mixture of sake and mirin (previously heated to evaporate alcohol).  No exact amounts of the igredients are indicated.

He later adds, near the end of the video, "Saikyo miso is very sweet, and it's a little too expensive for "oyaji ryori" (middled-aged men's cooking)."  That's why he uses a regular miso and adds mirin and sugar.

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I like this web page - thanks for posting it and I like the idea of adding sake lees. Also, the chef looks like someone I would love to learn from. On the same page, it shows 300-400 mg miso, 2 pieces of sake lees, 5 spoons of sugar and 1:1 sake and mirin (no other amounts indicated for simmered sake and mirin but I would probably start out at something like 1/2 cup each and see how it comes out).