Miso is a rich, salty condiment that characterizes the essence of Japanese cooking. Traditionally, the Japanese begin their day with a bowl of homemade miso soup. The also use miso to flavour a variety of foods in other meals throughout the day. To make miso, soy beans and sometimes a grain such as rice or wheat are combined with salt and a mould culture, and then aged in cedar vats for one to three years. The process of making miso is complex and requires a lot of experience, so not something to do at home. The addition of different ingredients and variations in length of fermentation produce different types of miso that vary greatly in flavour, texture, colour and aroma. Miso is very healthy; it contains isoflavones (about 20mg/100g), saponins, soy protein (partly digested) and live enzymes (in non-pasteurized miso). A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (June 18, 2003)

showed that women who consumed three or more bowls of miso soup daily reduced the ...more