Instant way to bolster flavour

Misoisthemagic flavouring for food, writes David Tanis

Ito NVENTIVE cooks are always looking is push flavour to the maximum. Here a little my advice: When in doubt, add miso. It has transformative powers. of In addition to offering a host miso nutritional and probiotic benefits, a sweet, imbues everything it touches with choose salty, nutty complexity. Whether you

yellow mild white miso, medium-bodied

reddish-brown miso or the more intense miso, it gives foods instant brightness.

adds Even a very small quantity

dressings, dimension and sparkle to salad soups and stews.

which Most people wouldn’t eat miso,

beans, is made from fermented soya

is too straight from the jar — the flavour concentrated. Diluted or in combination

it imparts with other ingredients, though,

way other a subtle roundness, in the same

anchovy umami-rich condiments, like

into paste or fish sauce, meld unobtrusively

miso into the whole. Some chefs mix a little

sauce for softened butter to make a quick

toast for fish. (Miso butter is also good on a snack, a bit like Marmite or Gentleman’s Relish, or with corn on the cob.)

I quite like to use miso in marinades,

mirin and thinned with a bit of sake or

paired punched up with ginger. It’s delicious

Misowith salmon, black cod or mackerel.

Meat coated broiled eggplant is brilliant. and poultry take well to the miso treatment,

or misotoo: Consider miso pork chops basted roast chicken or quail.

you’d With duck breasts — or legs, if

Leave the prefer — miso does wonders.

an hour, meat in the marinade for at least

the duck or for as long as two days. Grill

care to over coals or in cast iron, taking

hefty keep the meat medium-rare. Even

emerge 454g Muscovy duck breasts

I used tender, juicy and delightfully savoury.

each, moulard breasts, which weigh 227g but any size will work.

in any Though miso duck is wonderful

the star season, it’s pretty spectacular as

salad. element in a summery main course

to the I added orange zest and orange juice marinade, which came through beautifully.

to room It’s best to let the grilled duck cool temperature before carving.

and Tucked into crisp lettuce leaves

mango topped with tiny green beans, sliced

duck will and watercress sprigs, this

reason. astonish your guests. Miso is the

4 large duck breasts (about

907g/ 2 lbs) Salt and pepper

4 tbsp red miso

2 tbsp light soya sauce or tamari

1 tbsp sake or mirin (optional)

1 tbsp grated orange zest

1 tbsp grated ginger

1 garlic clove, minced

Pinch of cayenne

1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

4 tbsp freshly squeezed orange

juice 170g small green beans, topped

and tailed

Lettuce leaves, for serving

1 large mango, peeled and

sliced Watercress sprigs, for garnish

(optional) 3 tbsp chopped scallions

1. Time: 1 ½ hours Yield: 4 to 6 servings Trim duck breasts of extraneous

fat (or ask your butcher to trim

them) and score the skin. Season

very lightly with salt and generously

with coarsely ground pepper.

2.

Makethemarinade:Inamixingbowl, whisk together miso, soya

sauce, sake, orange zest, ginger,

garlic, cayenne and sesame oil. Remove ¼ cup of the marinade and

combine it with 2 tablespoons orange

juice to make a dressing; set aside.

Add remaining 2 tablespoons orange

juice to the marinade in the mixing

bowl. 3. Lay duck in a shallow pan

and pour the marinade over, making

sure

4.

5. meat is well coated. Let sit at

room temperature for at least 1 hour.

If you wish, cover and refrigerate for

up to 1 day; bring to room temperature before proceeding.

Prepareabedofmedium-hotcoalsin a grill, or heat a stovetop grill

or castiron pan to medium hot. Cook

duck breasts skin-side down for 8

to 10 minutes, until fat is rendered and

skin is nicely coloured. (See note).

Turn and cook on the other side for

3 or 4 minutes, until internal temperature registers 125 degrees. Remove

from heat and let rest at least 10 minutes. Meanwhile,bringapotofwell-salted water to a boil. Cook green

beans for 1 to 2 minutes, until firm-tender. Drain green beans and rinse with

cool water; blot dry.

6. Slice duck crosswise about

⅛-inch thick. Line a platter with

lettuce leaves. Place several slices

of duck on each leaf, along with a

couple of mango slices. Arrange

green beans over the top and garnish

with watercress, if using. Drizzle reserved dressing over everything, sprinkle with scallions and serve.

Keep meat at least 13 inches above coals to prevent scorching, and take care to move meat

away from flames if dripping fat ignites. If using stovetop grill or cast-iron pan, regulate heat to keep skin

from browning too quickly.