Miso Tasty Blog
Welcome to Miso Tasty’s blog where you will find our latest news and updates and our guide to Japanese cooking ingredients, food and recommendations.
We asked photographer Yuki Sugiura about food photography & favourite restaurants
As you might have guessed, as a food photographer I get to eat the most amazing food on regular bases and often eat too much good but rich food. I always like to try everything I shoot or what I cast my eye on so I never hold back. I try to balance my diet by eating light and healthy food with plenty of vegetables when I can at home as much as possible but I am not a strict person and I don’t have any rules. It’s taken me many years to learn to balance my diet and I am still far from perfect. I love food, I am naturally too greedy and too curious, I often eat way too much on set.
We askednutritional therapist and author Eve Kalinik about cooking with miso & gut health
As we uncover more and more about the gut and the trillions of microbes that live in our gut we understand just HOW much of a pivotal role the gut has in our overall health including supporting the immune system, managing inflammation and clear links with cognitive health. When you consider that we contain more microbes than human cells and most of these microbes live in our gut we really should show them some care and attention.
We asked MasterChef winner, Tim Anderson, about business during lockdown and secret ingredients
I use miso in too many ways to name, but one I’ve been particularly fond of lately is in nikumiso, which is basically just pork mince (I usually use half pork and half soy mince) cooked with onions, ginger, sesame oil, miso, and a bit of sugar. It’s sweet and salty and meaty and very very good. Usually you’d have it on rice, but it’s also good with noodles, on bread, or wrapped in lettuce. I had it on roasted courgettes recently and it was delicious. It’s also good cold, with the texture of a very coarse, meaty pate.
We asked author and Japanese chef Yuki Gomi about Cooking & secret ingredients
Yes, all the time, almost daily. Miso is full of umami. I make homemade miso, teaching my students directly how to make it too. There are many different types and occasions when you’d use one instead of the other. I love to make a simple, classic miso soup and also I use it for ramen broth. You can also mix it with everyday ingredients such as yoghurt to make the most amazing marinade sauce. I use it to make a quick dipping sauce if friends are coming round for a drink. It reminds me of a classic Japanese Dad watching a baseball game on TV, drinking cold beer and eating cucumber sticks with miso paste in the summer.
We asked food stylist and author Aya Nishimura, about recipes, cooking during lockdown & secret ingredients
My absolute favourite is miso soup, it’s my soul food. I also make miso marinated fish, and I often use it for dressings, or dipping sauces for noodles. It gives depth to the flavour and is so versatile to use.
We asked Chef Jeremy Pang from School of Wok about recipes & cooking with miso
It’s the perfect savoury flavour and works so well as a base for different dishes. I know that in typical Japanese cuisine, it can be quite prominent as a main ingredient for things like miso cod etc, but the other day for example, I had no chicken / veg stock in the freezer / pantry but I wanted to add a natural base of savoury flavour to my bolognese, so I added a couple of tablespoons of miso in whilst I was searing the mince. My three year old loved it, he’s not the most adventurous eater yet, but I was quite proud to get something so deep in flavour down him without him realising! I also use it alot for BBQ marinades too.
We asked journalist Alicia Kirby from Monocle Magazine about recipes & secret ingredients
We asked Chef Yuki Gomi about secretes to perfect sushi making & favourite Japanese restaurants
I love to pair sushi with a clam miso soup, it’s a fast dish, taking around 15 minutes to prepare. It is based on a subtle kombu dashi, boiled with clams. I then add a light Shiro miso and chopped chives for the garnish. So simple and loads of umami for a wonderful depth of flavour!
We asked Atsuko Ikeda from Atsuko’s Kitchen about recipes & Secret ingredients
I use it to make traditional Japanese dishes (such as miso aubergine, miso soups, miso marinade fish etc..) but not only: a spoonful of it added to a stew, and a sauce, or even a dessert (such as miso caramel), gives the dish an extra layer of umami. I also like to add it to butter or cream to give a richness, or to soups for depth of flavour. I guess you could call this fusion or just plain delicious!