Fragrant shiso leaves wrapped around a sweet, salty, lightly spicy miso filling.
The Story
In the mountain village of Nanmoku in Gunma Prefecture, simple preserved and home-grown ingredients remain an important part of local cooking. This dish wraps a sweet and salty miso filling inside fragrant shiso leaves before they are lightly grilled. It is the kind of small countryside dish built from ingredients that could traditionally be grown or kept close to home.
Ingredients
- 8–10 shiso leaves
- 2 tablespoons miso paste (white or awase)
- 1 tablespoon red bean paste (anko)
- 1–2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon gochugaru or Japanese chili
- 1 teaspoon mirin, optional
Instructions
- Mix the miso, red bean paste, sugar, chili, and mirin. Adjust to taste so the filling is sweet, salty, and slightly spicy.
- Wash and dry the shiso leaves, leaving them whole.
- Place a small spoonful of filling in the center of each leaf and fold or wrap it around the filling.
- For a lightly grilled version, cook in a small amount of oil over medium-low heat for 1–2 minutes per side, until fragrant. The source notes also allow serving them uncooked.