Pretty sure I earned a Japanese merit badge today. Made our own Miso from scratch! Will sit in this old crock (found in the tool shed & same one used for umeboshi last year) for 8 months.
Summary: Soybeans, Salt, Koji & no air.
Here’s how it went down (lousy photos with annotations):
Soaked for 24 hours and simmered for 4 hours and cooled down
Oh, this is what the salt and koji (culture) looks like
Mince up the beans with a, ummm mincer
Yup mix it all (salt, koji, miso) up
Squish out the air whilst making tennis ball sized chunks
Squish squish squish into the crock, no air remember
Fill a bag with salt to weigh it down and seal off the edges from air
Put on a label and wait for 8 months (cool place please, in our case, the kura barn) check in later to tell ya how it turned out