Miso: Savory Flavor + Health Benefits

with a recipe for Miso-Orange Glazed Carrots

Japanese food holds a special place in my heart because Japan was the first country I ever visited on my own. I lived in Tokyo for three months and had my 19^th birthday there-- what an adventure for a scrappy teenager! (I was there because I was recruited by a modeling agency, which is another story entirely, that was less glamorous than it sounds.) I didn’t have money for upscale restaurants then, but I got to experience many ramen shops, yakitori bars, street foods, and bustling markets. I returned home with a forever love for those foods, and for the key Japanese ingredient, miso. Since then, miso soup has ranked as one of my top comfort foods (especially sipped straight from the bowl), but I have only recently discovered miso’s incredible versatility beyond soup, as well as its remarkable health benefits.

What is Miso?

Miso is a fermented paste made from soybeans, rice, and/or barley. It has a rich, umami (savory), salty flavor, with a hint of sweetness, and a nice funkiness. Its flavor can range from mild to intense depending on the type used. As a rule, the darker the miso, the more robust it tastes. There are many different types of miso, but three varieties are common in well stocked grocery stores in the U.S.:

·         White Miso: also called shiro miso, sweet or mellow miso, is the mildest

·         Red Miso: also called aka miso, is the longest fermented with the strongest flavor

·         Mixed Miso: also called awase miso, is a combination of red and white miso pastes and has that middle-ground versatility

Because miso is a fermented product, unless it has been pasteurized, it contains active cultures and will continue to ferment over time. Store it in the refrigerator to slow the fermentation, and a container of miso will keep for about a year.

Miso’s Health Benefits

Miso’s active cultures (like the active cultures in yogurt, kimchi, and other fermented foods) are one of the main factors that make it so healthful. Those good bacteria are gut-friendly, helping to maintain a healthy gut microbiome which benefits our well-being in a multitude of ways, from improving digestion to optimizing our immune systems.

The science is still young on this ancient food, and more studies need to be done to fully understand its impact, the research points to miso’s many potential medicinal properties, including being anti-inflammatory, having antioxidant properties and preventing certain types of cancer.

Keep in mind that heat destroys miso’s good bacteria, so while it’s fine to cook with miso for flavor alone, to get its full probiotic benefit it’s best to stir it in at the very end of the cooking process, or use it as a dressing. Also, miso is fairly salty, so to keep sodium in check, I find it’s best to think of miso as a form of salt - just add additional salt to taste after using it. For reference, 1 ½ tablespoons of white miso has roughly the sodium equivalent of ¼ teaspoon of table salt.

Boundless Possibilities Beyond Miso Soup

If you don’t already have a container of miso in your fridge, I hope this newsletter convinces you to take the plunge. It is a very low risk proposition. As I mentioned, it lasts a year in the refrigerator, and there are a gazillion ways to use it in dishes beyond miso soup. Here are a few ideas:

·