Sake and Miso-Food

Miso Is the Jewel in the Crown of Fermented Food!

Some research shows that the two most effective fermented foods in preventing the growth of cancer cells are both Japanese: Miso (soy bean paste) and natto (fermented soy beans). Miso is particularly powerful in controlling cancer cell development. An additional piece of good news is that sake goes extremely well with miso. This is because the flavor and richness packed into miso (which derives from the amino acids contained in the soy beans) is quite similar to the palatability of sake, resulting in a synergetic enhancement of flavors. All dishes featuring ingredients dressed with miso, marinated in miso, cooked with miso, or grilled with miso as well as miso soup, create delicious harmonies with sake. Incidentally, soy sauce, which is indispensable to Japanese cooking, is also a fermented condiment. The addition of soy sauce or various other broths to the dishes above brings out the full flavor and richness of miso even further.

Wine is also known to go very well with fermented foods, especially fermented dairy products like cheese, because of the palate-cleansing effects wine’s strong acidity has. However, lower fat and lower calorie products are popular nowadays. In this culinary climate, therefore, Japanese fermented food products, which are low in calories yet high in fiber, are becoming more desirable. I hope condiments like miso becomes more widely used in Western cooking and that in turn will lead to an increase in the popularity of sake.

Let us raise a glass of sake and enjoy a miso-flavored dish tonight! Miso really is the king of fermented food.