Sesame Drunken Miso for One

• Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup (125 ml) medium sherry
  • 1 cup room temperature or cold water
  • 2 tbsp white miso paste
  • 1 tbsp dark miso paste (I use barley)
  • 1/4 – 1/2 tsp grated ginger (based on personal preference)
  • 1/4 cup chopped spring onion
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • a handful or two of your favourite noodles
  • about 1/4 cup (a healthy handful) of 1/2 inch cubed tofu

• Directions/Method
  1. Turn the heat to high and let your sherry boil with a fervour for 30 seconds. Pour in the water to bring the temperature down and also reduce the heat considerably to medium-low. It’s important the water isn’t hot because you’re about to add the miso, and boiling miso can not only kill its beneficial enzymes but also spoil the flavour. Plop that miso on in there, along with half of the spring onion and all of the ginger. Stir to break up the miso paste. Add the tofu.
  2. While the soup is brewing, prepare your noodles as per packet instructions. Once they’re ready, drain and place them in the bottom of a large bowl.
  3. Pour the miso broth over the noodles and drop the remaining spring onion on top. Drizzle with the sesame oil and serve.

Don’t boil the broth once the miso is added because it can spoil the flavour and kill the beneficial enzymes contained in the paste.

Sesame Tahini Miso Salad Dressing

• Ingredients
  • 1 tbsp white miso
  • 1 tbsp soya yoghurt
  • 1 tbsp medium sherry
  • 1 tbsp veg worcestershire
  • 1 tsp dark miso
  • 1 tsp tahini
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • Sesame seeds, to garnish (optional)

• Directions/Method
  1. Blend or mix all ingredients thoroughly, either by hand or in a small blender or spice mill. Serve on a crunchy green salad, tossing in some toasted sesame seeds for extra nom factor.

Tofu Drop Miso Soup in Mushroom Dashi

• Ingredients
  • 400ml hot water
  • 1 dried shiitake mushroom
  • 1 small piece of kombu
  • 1.5 tbsp each white and dark miso (I use barley)
  • 1/2 tsp sesame oil
  • 80g (1/4 cup) silken tofu
  • 1.5 tbsp plain white flour
  • 1/8 tsp black salt
  • pinch of turmeric
  • 1 spring onion, sliced thinly

• Directions/Method
  1. To make the dashi place the mushroom, kombu and water into a small saucepan. Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes or so. If you’re not super keen on the kombu flavour, you can minimise its time in the broth (I generally add it for just 5-10 minutes).
  2. Meanwhile whisk the silken tofu, flour, black salt, and turmeric in a small bowl, until smooth.
  3. Remove the mushroom and kombu from the water and set the mushroom aside to cool. Add the miso pastes and sesame oil to the pot, ensuring it’s well mixed. Try not to over heat the mixture, ensuring it stays below a boil at all times (or you risk killing some of what’s good in miso).
  4. Stir the soup and then slowly pour the tofu mixture into the pot. Don’t worry if it doesn’t come out in a smooth stream; lumps are okay. Cut the stem off of the mushroom, which should now be dry, and slice or dice the head before chucking it back into the soup as well.
  5. Serve warm with spring onion (scallion) to garnish.

Vegan Twice Baked Potatoes

• Ingredients
  • 2 medium baking potatoes
  • 1 tsp oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 3 tbsp (45 ml) soya yoghurt
  • 1 tbsp vegan butter
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1/4 – 1/2 tsp salt, depending on taste
  • 1 tsp dark miso paste (I used barley miso)
  • 1 tbsp sherry

• Directions/Method
  1. Pierce the skin of the potatoes about a dozen times with a sharp knife and simply bake the potatoes at 200° for about an hour. You can tell if the potatoes are done or not by inserting a knife into the potato. Once baked, remove the potatoes from the oven and cut each one in half. Allow to cool for a few minutes.
  2. While the potatoes are cooling, heat the oil to medium heat in a saucepan and toss the onions in. Cover and leave for ten minutes, stirring halfway through. Add the garlic and fry for one more minute before adding the onion and garlic mixture to a large bowl.
  3. Scoop the potato out of the skins into the bowl with the above mixture. It’s okay if a little potato is still left on the skins; better that than breaking the skins! Add all the rest of the ingredients into the bowl and mash well (a few lumps of potato are ok).
  4. Re-fill the potato skins with the mashed potato mixture. If you’re feeling creative you can use a pastry bag or a fork to create a design on the top. Or you can just plop it in with a spoon.
  5. Place the skins on a tray and pop the potatoes back in the oven (which you shouldn’t have turned off, by the way) for another 15-20 minutes, or until the top of the mash begins to brown.
  6. Enjoy with a great big salad or even a burger (veggie, of course)!

Creamy Parmitalia Salad Dressing

• Ingredients
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 3 tbsp vinegar
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast + 1 tsp
  • 1 tbsp white miso paste
  • 1 tbsp water
  • 1/8 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/8 tsp dried basil
  • 1/8-1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp okara (optional)
  • Scant 1/4c (10-15g) finely grated vegan sharp cheddar (I use Scheese)
  • 1 tsp vegan parmesan powder

• Directions/Method
  1. Using a pestle and mortar, or in a blender, combine and mix the garlic and olive oil into a paste. Add the vinegar, miso, water 1 tbsp of the nutritional yeast, the herbs, and salt.
  2. In a separate bowl, combine the grated vegan cheese with the other teaspoon of nutritional yeast, plus the Parmazano and okara if using (a few clumps are fine).
  3. Fold the cheese mixture lightly into the dressing and voila! You’re done.

Miso Rosy Cannellini Beans

• Ingredients
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 medium onion, diced
  • 2 cloves minced garlic
  • 1-2 sprigs worth of fresh rosemary, chopped
  • 2.5 tbsp white miso paste
  • 2 cups (350g or 12oz) cannellini beans
  • 1/4 cup (60ml) vegan white wine

• Directions/Method
  1. Fry the onion lightly in the olive oil for 3-4 minutes over medium heat, or until the onions are soft and translucent. Add the garlic and rosemary and cook one minute more.
  2. Add the beans, miso, and rosemary and stir to mix well. The miso may clump at first but will quickly mix in.
  3. Finally pour in the white wine and simme until the liquid has cooked down , about 5-10 minutes.
  4. Serve warm or cold.

Miso Soup with Faux Chix and Spinach

• Ingredients
  • 3 cups of your choice of stock (mushroom works great!)
  • 1 or 2 tbsp miso paste
  • 1 vegan chicken filet (or tofu), cut into very thin slivers
  • 1/4″ cubes of firm tofu
  • a handful of spinach
  • spring onions, cut, to garnish

• Directions/Method
  1. Brew stock, but don’t add the miso paste yet.
  2. Cut the veg chicken into tiny slivers and add to stock, along with cubes of tofu.
  3. Make sure the soup is below a boiling temperature and add spinach and miso.
  4. Allow spinach to just wilt in the soup before serving, about two minutes cooking time.
  5. Garnish soup with sping onions and serve!

Serves 2

• Stock:
  • 4-5 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked in 3 cups hot water
  • 2 tbsp mirin
  • 2 tbsp light/regular soy sauce
  • 1-2 tbsp tianjin preserved vegetables (optional)
  • brown rice miso paste to taste

• Carrots:
  • carrots, cut into small matchsticks
  • 1-2 tbsp fresh ginger
  • dried chilli flakes (as much or as little as you’d like)
  • 2 tbsp dried coconut
  • oil (preferably peanut / groundnut)

• Misc:
  • two blocks of dried noodles (ramen work)
  • spring onions, cut lengthways
  • 1/2 a purple onion, sliced thinly

• Tofu steaks (method 1):
  • firm tofu
  • soy sauce
  • vegetarian worcestershire sauce
  • sesame oil
  • wasabe powder

• Tofu Steaks (method 2):
  • firm tofu
  • mirin
  • soy sauce
  • ginger
  • liquid smoke
  • oil

1. For the the stock, soak four or five dried shiitake mushrooms in hot water for at least 20 minutes. The water will turn light brown in colour. Once brewed, either discard the mushrooms or use them to add to the noodles later (they’re yummy). Add mirin, soy sauce, and preserved vegetables. Don’t add the miso paste until just before you’re ready to serve the meal. Don’t boil the broth once the miso is added because it can spoil the flavour and kill the beneficial enzymes contained in the paste.
2. Slice tofu blocks into 1/2 inch “steaks” and marinate in preferred sauce (or some of both, whichever you prefer) for 5-10 minutes. Bake slices in a 200 C oven for about 20 minutes on each side, so 40 minutes total.
3. Meanwhile, boil the noodles for a few minutes, until cooked. Drain and keep in cold water until ready to use.
4. About 5 minutes before the tofu slices are due to be finished, stir fry carrots in oil with ginger, chilli , and coconut. I like carrots to be quite crunchy, but if you prefer them to be more well done then you need to give yourself longer than the auggested 5 minutes.
5. When bean curd slices are cooked, bring the stock to a medium heat and incorporate miso paste. Add noodles.
6. Dish noodles and broth up in a large bowl and top with carrots, spring onion, and tofu slices.