Can I Use Miso Instead of Dashi?
Is Miso Paste the Same As Dashi?
I had explained about the differences between miso paste and dashi (soup stock) on the above page.
Those 2 materials are totally different: miso has explicitly salty taste, while dashi doesn’t.
So, basically I wouldn’t recommend to use miso instead of dashi.
But, there is exception. You can use dashi miso in place of dashi in some cases.
What Is Dashi Miso?
Dashi miso is, as the name says, miso paste that already contains dashi stock. The type of dashi depends on the manufacturer, but katsuo (bonito) dashi and kombu (kelp) dashi are common.
Japanese people often use dashi miso especially when making miso soup. As you might expect, miso soup requires both dashi (soup stock) and miso, so dashi miso is extremely useful material.
I think cooking is a fight against time for many of you (including me). Whenever I want to make miso soup as soon as possible, dashi miso helps me a lot.
Actually, dashi miso is very attractive seasoning for other type of dishes besides miso soup.
Next, I will talk about using dashi miso in other dishes!
What If I Use Dashi Miso Instead of Dashi
As I mentioned above, using dashi miso instead of dashi is totally fine when making miso soup. However, you should probably be careful when you make dishes that miso flavor is not required, for example, soy sauce-based dishes.
So, what to do for the dish like that…?
For the dishes that doesn’t use miso as a main flavor, you should use just a small amount of dashi miso. You may need about half teaspoon of them for 2-3 servings of a food.
Although the amount of dashi itself is small, the dish gets great koku (richness) and it improves the taste amazingly.
Only small amount of dashi miso hardly ruin the main taste of the food. But, please don’t forget to adjust the amount of miso paste depending on your food volume, and adjust the saltiness of the dish with other seasonings.
By the way, if you don’t want the taste of miso at all, please find other substitutes for dashi. Here is the list you should check out!
10 Best Dashi Stock Substitutes
What If I Use Regular Miso Instead of Dashi
As you know, regular miso is usually salty and doesn’t contain dashi. That’s why it’s generally not suitable as a replacement.
But, adding a small amount of regular miso is actually great way to upgrade your cooking! Although it’s small amount compared with some kind of dashi, regular miso also contains umami component that have produced in the fermentation process.
The most ideal method for you is using some dashi substitute such as dashi granules, and then adding half teaspoon of regular miso paste. That’s perfect.
If you don’t have any substitute for dashi, but have some miso paste, please use just a little bit of them. It must add some umami and koku (richness) to the dish!
When the taste of the dish become too salty, adding a little sugar or mirin is recommended.
The saltiness of the miso differ depending on the manufacturer, so please feel free to adjust the amount of other seasonings.
