MISOMICS Handmade Miso Workshop

Miso, a traditional Japanese “soul food,” is a fermented food with a variety of health benefits. Nowadays, most people eat storebought miso, but in the past, it was common to make miso at home, as evidenced by the widespread use of the term “temae-miso” (handmade miso). In BioClub’s MISOMICS (MISO + genOMICS) project, we have been making our own miso and conducting genomic analysis to study the ecosystem of microorganisms within it. We’ve found that handmade miso may contain indigenous microbes from the its creators’ hands. If we all put our hands into making miso together, we should be able to produce delicious miso with everyone’s combined microbiomes. For the first time since 2022, MISOMICS will be holding a workshop to make miso!

In this workshop, we will first introduce the MISOMICS project and the practice of making miso by hand, and then we will make miso with our special ingredients. Participants will take miso in plastic bags to age and ferment at home. You can take home three different amounts of miso: 1.5 kg, 2.0 kg, or 2.5 kg. If you drink one cup of miso soup a day, 2.5 kg is equivalent to about five months’ worth. Incidentally, miso has no expiration date — in fact, there is an old Japanese saying: “the older the wife and the miso, the better.” So don’t worry about eating it quickly!

After registration, participants will be mailed soybeans; the amount varies based on how much miso you want. You will be asked to bring the cooked soybeans and broth with them on the day of the event. For example, for 2.5kg of miso, you will need a 3L pot to boil 500g of beans. (You will boil the beans according to this procedure: https://sites.google.com/view/soybean-prep). If you are unable to boil the beans but would like to participate, please contact us.

Please bring an apron or clean clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty, a triangular cloth or bandana to cover your head, and a towel for wiping your hands. Since we will be making miso with bare hands, we ask that participants refrain from wearing nail polish or gel nails, as well as perfume. It is often said that miso tastes better with children’s hands in it, so you are welcome to bring your children along!

After the miso making, we will have a simple year-end party for the MISOMICS project. Participation fee will be about 1,000 yen (to be paid on site), and you are welcome to bring your own food and drinks of equal value. Everyone is welcome to attend, so please bring your friends and family.