Miso enthusiast

I met a miso and koji enthusiast at the Fermentation Day recently. He came by yesterday to see how I do it. I scheduled the day so we could make miso and start a batch of barley koji while he was here.

First we made an herb miso with french soybeans (precooked the night before), barley koji, seasalt, basil, thyme, oregano and garlic.

We used the standard recipe with a deciliter each of the herbs. There was a small jar for him to take home.

We also made a batch of barley koji – steam cooked the barley, let it cool, then mixed in koji starter.

Then he returned home without seeing the mold grow for 2 days, but he did see the result of the previous batch, which we spread out to dry.

Miso in the meantime

This time it’s a rice miso with the standard proportion of ingredients, but with herbs added.

Herb miso for 2021.

Last miso

One last miso of this season. It’s a herb miso but this time using barley koji.

Soon the next miso season next year will get underway as well a new production of koji.

Who needs meat?

When you have herb miso.

Just take slice of bread – any bread will do – here it’s rye crisp or hard tack. Spread a little butter or such on it ever so lightly. Then top it with a wee portion of herb miso.

Crunch – you have a mouthful of tasty umame!

Herb miso

My contribution to the world of miso (I presume). I’ve never heard of a miso with herbs added before fermentation.

I use my standard recipe for rice miso, then add a deciliter each of thyme, oregano, basil and 5 or 6 cloves of garlic.

Basil

Sweet basil gets alot of protection and watering this year of the long hot summer and is growing like never before.

One of my favorite herbs, I need a lot. Along with thyme and oregano, it makes up my version of the herbs of provence, which I use it in my herb miso as well as a score of other recipes.

Herb miso

I still have s couple of batches of miso to make before summer. Today it was an herb miso. Soybeans, rice koji, salt, garlic, thyme, oregano and basil.

Rainy weather

No fun messing about in the garden today, so in keeping with this years early start at miso making, I’ll make some herb rice miso. 

With some foresight, I cooked a load of sojbeans last night. 

And with some garlic, basil, oregano, thyme and of course rice koji and salt. 

And 2 years fermentation.

The small amount on the right got a diced fresh cayenne pepper too. 

Herb Miso

I cooked the soybeans and gathered the other ingredients for this seasons Herb Miso. 

I use the standard rice miso recipe of 1 kilo soybeans, 1 kilo rice koji, 460 grams of seasalt, but then I add 1 deciliter each of basil, oregano and thyme, plus 6 cloves of garlic to the mixture. 

Ready for the usual 2 year fermentation. 

Next week I will be making my last batch of miso for this year. It will be a chickpea miso. So keep your eyes pealed. 

Herb miso

This time there is a mix of home grown herbs thrown into the otherwise ordinary 2 year rice miso. 

  
  
It’s really good!