While in L.A. this past January, I made my annual pilgrimage to the Los Angeles Farmers’ Markets. The produce at all the major markets is great—amazing really—for a chef from the Midwest shopping in the middle of winter. In particular, I like to check out the Hollywood market for its artisanal food products. For the first time this year, I met Ai Fujimoto, the founder and co-owner of Omiso Co. The company is a startup in downtown L.A. that creates various styles of traditional miso from a mash of soybeans, steamed rice or barley, salt and koji culture. The different miso are fermented from six months to two years, and watched over with the same intensity of care you see at microbreweries in Japan. At the Farmers’ Market, I tried a really good chunky aka miso as well as a yuzu citrus sauce made with shiro miso.
What absolutely delighted me, however, was Miso Co.’s misomaru, or instant soup balls. They are made of different miso kneaded with dashi powder and dried ingredients like seaweed, sesame and freeze-dried chive. The packaging was fabulous, with the misomaru looking like assorted truffles in an elegant black box. Just put one in the bottom of a cup, add hot water, and stir. It makes a deeply satisfying cup of soup…warm, fragrant and nourishing.
It turns out that misomaru are very popular right now in Japan. They are enjoyed for breakfast and can be individually wrapped, ends twisted like a caramel candy, and tucked into a lunch box for school or work. There are television shows demonstrating how to prepare the soup balls, with housewives competing for the cutest ones to put in their kids’ bento boxes. These are fun and easy to make. They can also be a good thing to do with a cooped up kid.
Wow-another stunning issue! I loved the soup balls-so practical and gorgeous to look at. Kudos to your photographer as well – your
fascinating commentary is elevated by the beauty of the images that illustrate it.