Go Back
Print Recipe

Step-by-step Guide: How to Make Akamiso 赤味噌 Red Miso

Red Akamiso 赤味噌 Miso is one of the darkest most flavourful misos. It is typically aged for over a year to produce a rich paste, packed with umami flavours.
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time1 hour
365 days
Total Time365 days 2 hours
Course: Ingredient
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: fermented, Koji, miso, soya beans
Servings: 180 10g
Calories: 56kcal
Cost: £20

Equipment

  • 2 litre jar
  • Saucepan
  • Bowl
  • A weight for the top of the miso

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Wash the beans, removing any remaining pieces of shell
  • When the water runs clear, cover and leave the beans to soak in cold water for at least 6 hours
  • The beans will almost double in volume. Place beans in a saucepan with fresh water and simmer gently until cooked. This will take about 45 minutes for fava beans or 2 hours for soybeans.
    Alternatively: A darker colour miso can be achieved if the beans are steamed, instead of boiled.
  • Drain the beans in a colander, saving the bean cooking water for use later.
  • Mash the beans. If you like a smooth miso you can pulse them in a food processor. I prefer a chunky miso (which I can blend to a smooth paste, if a specific recipe requires it, once the miso is ready) Some people also like to put the mixture through a meat grinder, to produce a well mixed paste. All methods will produce a delicious miso!
  • Add the salt and mix in.
  • Once the beans have cooled to less than 40'C (if you haven't got a thermometer wait until the beans feel the same temperature as your skin - or cooler) stir in the koji.
  • Now try to form the mixture into a ball. At this stage it will probably be too dry and fall apart.
  • Slowly add the cooled bean water that you saved earlier. Mix well and stop as soon as the mixture can be formed into a ball.
    Note: If you've forgotten to save the bean water you can used cooled boiled water.
  • Get a clean 2 litre jar/crock. Moisten a clean paper towel with bean water and rub a small amount of salt all over the inside - this will help to prevent mold from growing at the edges.
  • Press the bean mixture into the jar, one layer at a time. Try to remove as many air bubbles as you can.
  • Once all the mixture is in the jar, wipe the edges with a clean paper towel.
    Lightly sprinkle the surface with salt and then cover with cling film.
    Find a plate or jar that fits inside your crock and then place weights on top of it. These will continually press down on the miso, removing air pockets as they form.
  • Leave the miso in a cool, dry place for a year. Then enjoy!
    The miso can be matured for longer than a year, it will become darker and deeper in flavour the longer it is left.
    Note: The miso in the picture has been blended to a smooth paste.

Notes

Traditionally soybeans are used to make miso, but as I'm allergic to soy I've use fava beans.