Scotland’s first miso is being made in Aberdeenshire, using traditional Japanese methods and Scottish ingredients.
Founded by Jonathan Hope and Robin Sherriff, Slow Sauce takes the classic Japanese method of koji fermentation and reimagines it with the ingredients that we have here.
‘The Japanese adoption and obsession with whisky gave me the initial inspiration for the business. I thought, why can’t we do the same and make amazing miso?’ Jonathan said.
‘My obsession with fermentation was a gradual process. Working in kitchens for 10 years, I was always uncomfortable with how fast everything had to be, rushing for service on that particular day, and I have to admit that I have always been a day dreamer, never the fastest off the mark.
‘When fermenting things, you have to take your time and get it right or the result 1 week, 3 months or even 12 months later will not be a tasty one.
‘It was not conscious at first, but I would always volunteer for the fermenting and pickling jobs, so after a number of years it became what I specialised in.’
Jonathan now makes small-batch miso using Scottish-grown gluten free oats and British peas, aged in oak barrels in the hills of Aberdeenshire.
‘We are blessed with a local organic farm on our doorstep which has been gluten free for 30 years, so it seemed an obvious choice,’ he said.
‘Scotland in general is known for its beautiful water and amazing grains which the whisky industry has benefited from for generations.’
The only thing they buy from Japan is the Koji-Kin mushroom spores, from a family firm which has been making it for 140 years.
‘We intend to keep buying koji-kin from them and would not seek to purchase it elsewhere or culture our own as it feels right to give back to Japan’, Jonathan said.
‘To make koji we first soak, then steam our organic gluten free Scottish oats, and once they have cooled, we introduce the fungi spores.
‘They then go into the incubation chamber for two days at 28C and 80% humidity.
‘For the second half of the process, we need to stir it every six hours as enzyme production increases and the mushroom grows the heat rises and if not stirred often enough it can kill itself before the end of the process.
‘Once the koji is ready to make the miso we mix it with more cooked oats and salt, then put it through a mincer to make sure there is the maximum surface area available for the enzymes to work as efficiently as possible.
‘This is then packed into an oak barrel and left to ferment for three months.’
For Jonathan it’s all about using traditional Japanese methods.
‘There are many different ways to make miso, the most important tenets in our humble opinion are using as few ingredients as possible, the best ingredients possible – organic and local – and fermenting at room temperature,’ he said.
And for those who don’t know much about miso, treat it like fancy salt. Slather it on toast, stir it through porridge, or use it to dress your salad and glaze your veg.
‘I keep mine beside the salt and pepper, whatever I am making gets a little miso or shoyu, I’m always telling people to start with a teaspoon. A little goes a long way,’ Jonathan said,
‘Sounds strange to say (as someone trying to flog miso) but you also don’t necessarily want all your dishes to taste of miso, you want it to be there in the background, it has this uncanny ability to knit flavours together and make things taste rounded, balanced and finished.
‘Simple applications are a teaspoon of shoyu in an avocado with a teaspoon of olive oil, a wee spread of miso on toast with butter or a teaspoon of shoyu on a steamed sweet potato.’
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