Miso

While I had enjoyed comforting and restorative miso soup in restaurants, it was Chuck who first introduced me to the basic ingredient, miso paste, more than two decades ago. It was dark, dense, with a strong flavor which always reminded me of soy sauce and kept forever in the refrigerator. Then, a couple of years ago, we were in the Whole Foods store out in Hadley, when we discovered a Massachusetts company called South River Miso. It was like going from ho-hum instant coffee to espresso. It was a revelation.

South River makes a wide variety of miso. At the risk of being the kiss of death, I have to say our favorite is their “Sweet-Tasting Brown Rice Miso”. It manages to be both delicate and complex. But we also keep jars of their darker “Three Year Barley” and “Hearty Brown Rice” in the refrigerator. (The miso really can be kept refrigerated for an indefinite period of time.) The South River website has lots of recipes and interesting information on how they make their miso - something they’ve been doing for about three decades, most of that time on their farm out in Conway.