Umami Bomb: Caramelized Miso Cheese
If you read our post about growing koji in your kitchen, you’re probably itching to try out those new koji skills! This miso cheese recipe is an excellent next stop on your koji-kitchen journey. Miso cheese is sure to add a twist to any cheese lover’s plate, plus it’s easy to make at home!
The following is an excerpt from Koji Alchemy by Rich Shih and Jeremy Umansky It has been adapted for the web.
Photo Credit: Peter Larson
Our good friend James Wayman, chef of the Oyster Club in Mystic, Connecticut, is making a huge impact on the southern New England food scene. He was inspired by our Miso Cheese and decided to make his own. As a result, he came up with a variation that we had to share.
Dried ricotta miso cheese. Photo by Claudia Mak.
Ingredients
- 453 g goat cheese
- 226 g jasmine rice koji
- 33 g sea salt
Procedure
As you may have noticed, this recipe calls for a 2:1 ratio of protein base to koji. This ultimately increases the protein-to-starch ratio, which leans toward more umami (with less sugar for sweetness) as well as ultimate acidity in the fermentation, and follows along the lines of a traditional long-term miso that’s focused on protein conversion for umami over feeding microbes.
Follow the mixing and containment instructions in the recipe for Miso Cheese. Let the cheese do its thing at ambient temperatures for a month. (You’ll have to keep your eye out for the possibility of rancidity, of course. However, in all of our years of making Miso Cheese at ambient temperatures, we’ve never had an issue with it tasting bad.)
After the set duration, form a ball with the miso and hang it in cheesecloth for another week at ambient temperatures. Due to the ball shape, a touch of alcohol will build up inside. Break up the ball in a medium-sized bowl so the largest pieces are no bigger than 0.5 inch (1.2 cm). Spread it evenly on trays in a dehydrator set for 140°F (60°C) and run it for 8 hours. You’ll end up with an amazing caramelized crumble that has crazy umami to top whatever you’d normally grate a sharp cheese or Parmesan over.
As an extension of this technique, you may be thinking that smoked cheese as a base for making an amino paste would be a good way to go. Well, we’ve found that there are times when it doesn’t work out well. Smoking generates creosote, which is deposited on the food. It’s acrid, bitter, and binds well to fats. We’ve found that when you use smoked cheese as a base for a miso, the undesirable flavor overpowers. This is especially true when you dehydrate it. So if you would like to make a smoked version, we recommend doing a cold smoke after all is said and done.
Recommended Reads
Read The Book
Koji Alchemy
Rediscovering the Magic of Mold-Based Fermentation (Soy Sauce, Miso, Sake, Mirin, Amazake, Charcuterie)
$34.95
You may like...
-
$75.00 -
$40.00
Recent Articles
Wild seeds and grains are not only nutritious and versatile but also perfect for adding variety to off-grid or wildcrafted meals.
Read More
Ancient mushroom medicine for modern times! Mushrooms help us understand medicine is not only through chemical compounds. Get your daily dose of health with recipes for:
– Medicinal Mushroom Crackers
– Medicinal Mushroom and Vegetable Broth
– Chaga-Reishi Chai
There are reasons that miso paste has become popular around the world: it’s versatile, relatively inexpensive, and can be made in a range of flavors you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else. And better yet, you can even make miso at home!
Read More
Wondering where to forage for greens this spring? Look no further than hedges, which serve as natural havens for wild greens and herbs!
Read More
Homemade cheese doesn’t have to be complicated, all you really need is a handful of ingredients, time and a love of cheese.
Read More