Organic Red Miso Paste by Hikari - 17.6 oz

Diane Kistner: I don't know the difference between white and red miso, but after reading a lot of reviews, I decided to get the red miso because I think it will likely keep longer and the flavor will stay more stable; also, it's likely to take less of it. I got this brand because online reviews were favorable, both on Amazon and elsewhere.

I recently got some Yuzu Kosho to review (YUM), and many people mentioned mixing a little of it into miso soup, which is why I bought this miso paste. I also got some dehydrated garlic chives so I can try out these new flavors. I don't know about you, but this pandemic has gotten me SO BORED with food, so I'm always on the lookout for anything I can do to perk things up.

United States on Jan 12, 2022

M. Davis: I'll just point out, that I've never tried Miso Paste (or possibly even regular Miso) before trying this product. I got it for a recipe and had to guess which color/flavor I would want to use for it (not knowing anything about Miso). Still haven't gotten around to trying that recipe, so I can't say how well it works just yet, but I have tried this product.

If you've never tried Miso paste, it tastes exactly like what you might imagine a concentrated soy sauce paste and a pure salt paste combined together might taste like. Incredibly, unbelievably strong flavor for only trying like an eighth of a teaspoon by itself. But that's good, I think, cause you're not supposed to eat this stuff plain. Concentrated flavor means you have to use less of it when adding it to a dish, so it goes a long way.

Just, uh, make sure not to add too much of it to any one dish cause this must have an insanely high salt content, judging by taste alone, so I can't imagine having a lot of this at once would be too great for your heart/health. In small quantities, though, good flavor.

United States on Jan 08, 2019

R. Doyle: I've bought this several times. It can be hard to find miso of any kind, but particularly red miso, where I live. The Asian store closest to me sometimes has it, but the price is the same as here and I like that this one is free of preservatives. Despite not having preservatives it keeps well (it's already fermented, so what can happen to it?). I've used it in everything from soups to salad dressings with good results. It doesn't have the strongest flavor, but it's very pleasant. The one downside is that the plastic container it comes in isn't great for storing it. The top tends to come off if it's jostled in the fridge, which is annoying. Probably the way to go is to scoop the miso out of this container and put it in a more secure one, but I'm lazy.

United States on Jan 31, 2018

culturejamming: I'm not a miso expert by any means but I've been cooking more Asian cuisine at home these days. I started with miso soup, using the standard white miso paste I bought from an organic company (Westbrae) at Wegmans. It's pretty good but I'm a salt fiend and the flavor was fairly mild and not very salty. I decided it was time to try stronger flavored red miso so I purchased this on Amazon. Wow, the flavor is strong and very salty (in a good way, if you prefer that, like me). I'll be buying red miso from now on and find that it adds a good touch of flavor without needing to add extra salt to soups, stews, and noodle dishes.

One of my favorite easily prepared meals is a mix of Chinese noodles, red miso, soy sauce, a dash of Sriracha for heat (I also have Korean gochujang paste which could be substituted), furikake (a seasoning comprised of sesame seeds and seaweed), and an optional coating of Kewpie mayo drizzled on top. It seems like a slight variation on many other noodle recipes I've found online. Once the noodles boil for 4 minutes, they can be tossed in that well-mixed sauce and the flavor is bold, full of umami, and salty.

I will definitely be buying this miso again...

United States on Apr 06, 2017

Kellena: This is my first foray into red, I usually buy light. As such, I am not sure if I just don't like "red" as much, or if this brand is just very very strong. It is super thick, too, and I wasn't aware that the 2 had different textures? This, added to hot liquid, seems to take forever to begin to melt and mix in as compared to the aka I am used to. Tried it for my ginger miso apple cider vinegar sweet salad dressing, ended up having to add far more sugar than usual, but THEN it seemed as good if not better. Have had it for well over a week and have used it pretty much daily and have hardly made a dent... so that's a definite justification for the cost.

All in all, I am glad to have miso back in the house now that I am so far from the Asian grocery I used to live across from.

United States on Mar 20, 2015