Question regarding miso paste?

[ElleV108]

I have a recipe that needs "yellow miso paste" but all I can find at my grocery store is "Minute Miso"...Will this work as a substitute?
I've never cooked with miso - although I've only been vegan for 8 months, I typically eat raw foods and haven't really gotten into the cooking/baking yet (mainly because i'm too busy!).. but this recipe looks good, and I don't want to mess it up!

Thanks in advance

[Firestorm]

I think minute miso is a concentrate so it may work, but I think what the recipe is referring to is something like this:http://www.goodnessdirect.co.uk/cgi-...Miso_250g.html, if you can find white miso I think that can be used instead of yellow.

[fondducoeur]

Is the minute miso more like an instant miso soup packet? That will not work in place of miso paste.
However, if it looks "paste-like" it should be okay. I am not too picky about which miso variety I use (white, yellow, red, etc) just be aware that the darker varieties are stronger (and hence more salty), so you may have to adjust your recipe accordingly.

[ElleV108]

The minute miso I found in the store appears paste-like.. http://www.amazon.com/Hikari-Misos-M.../dp/B001P4R23I It's definitely a darker color.. I'm looking to make a macaroni and cheese recipe.. which maybe the reason they call for yellow miso paste is for the color?

[Firestorm]

I think yellow Miso is supposed to provide a "Cheesey" flavour, its in a recipe I have for Quiche Lorraine Burgers

[VeganAthlete]

Is Marukome's Instant Miso Soup (With Tofu) vegan?

[vepurusg]

Miso often has fish in it (bonito), so it's hard to say if it's vegan without reading the ingredients.

If you can't find miso, a few drops of vinegar (apple cider works well) and yeast can contribute quite a bit to a slight "cheeziness". It's the products of fermentation and the taste of the fungus that's important.

[fondducoeur]

I expect that stuff would be fine; I would feel comfortable trying it at least.

[Andy_T]

Miso often has fish in it (bonito), so it's hard to say if it's vegan without reading the ingredients.

Vepurusg, can you please provide some more sources to back that up?

While miso soup is commonly made with dashi (soup stock made from dried bonito, seaweed and glutamate), this is the first time that I hear that miso contains some of it.

(And it would bother me quite a bit, as I use miso quite a bit in my cooking, and - vegan - dashi made only from seaweed.)

Best regards,
Andy

[vepurusg]

Vepurusg, can you please provide some more sources to back that up?

I've just read it (bonito) on the ingredients of miso packages at some import stores and grocery chains. It's certainly not in all of them, or even most, but it seemed to be in 20-30% by my guess.

No need to worry about it if you read the ingredients. It's usually easy to find one without anything nasty added to it.

(And it would bother me quite a bit, as I use miso quite a bit in my cooking, and - vegan - dashi made only from seaweed.)

Never used dashi myself; although I have occasionally added seaweed to miso soup, I'm generally not keen on fishy tasting things (vegan or not). Tofu and chives are the way to go, IMO.

[Andy_T]

Thanks for the heads up!
Reading ingredients list (as always) then.

I personally have not encountered it consciously (will check of course) but I am typically buying the large organic miso packages.

Best regards,
Andy

[vepurusg]

I personally have not encountered it consciously (will check of course) but I am typically buying the large organic miso packages.

Ah, yeah, I don't think I've ever seen it on Organic miso, but it's probably better to give the ingredients list a quick skim in either case.

[Blueberries]

Andy is right, miso itself is just fermented soya beans, maybe with rice or barley. Bonito would be in miso soup mixtures, not the miso paste itself. If you're having trouble finding the paste, look in Asian supermarkets or health food shops.

[vepurusg]

Andy is right, miso itself is just fermented soya beans, maybe with rice or barley. Bonito would be in miso soup mixtures, not the miso paste itself.

If it were but that was always the case... unfortunately, omnivores seem to pride themselves on unnecessarily adding animal parts to random and unexpected foods.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miso

In recent years, many new types of miso have appeared. For example, there are ones with added soup stocks or calcium, or reduced salt for health, etc.

It probably just depends on where you are shopping, as to whether you ever see it or not. I know from first hand experience that some packages, side-by-side with otherwise vegan miso and labeled clearly only as miso in English and with Japanese text which I can not read, many varieties have Bonito in them. The only way I can distinguish between them is by reading the ingredients (they are all billed as simply miso paste, though perhaps in Japanese there is more information that I am missing, like a "now with added fish paste!" exclaimed on the front).

I love Miso; fantastic food, and one of my favorites. I still have to read the ingredients, though, to avoid getting a package to which the ever so helpful manufacturer has deemed appropriate to add fish pastes and extracts for me .


Apparently there is also some kind of traditional miso called "Jōmon miso" which is made with fish and grain instead of beans and grain. This is news to me; I hope it's not common.

[Desertthorn]

I love miso also and often have it for breakfast on cold wintery days. Its also good to toss in anything in the refrig that might be looking a little wilty or beyond fresh