Miso-walnut: a sauce that does everything

Plus three ways to use it!

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Hello dear readers, and welcome to today’s Stories from Catbird Cottage! You may or may not know that for the past year-and-a-half I’ve committed to weight lifting. Not because I’m trying to flex (ha) but because it presented itself when I was seeking a new fitness regimen, and at this stage in my life I know it’s one of the best things I can do for my body. Lifting heavy things has brought challenges and new accomplishments. There are some exercises I can’t wait to return to, to refine and continue on a path to progress, and others which often elicit internal wavering, or questions about “what does my ability feel like today?” Ultimately, it’s all good: I’m investing in my physical instrument, something I strongly recommend we all do, so we can keep doing the innumerable things daily life calls for.

Another aspect is the wonderful community that’s grown with showing up to lift weights. To drive twenty minutes in the (now quite cold!) early morning, then warm ourselves with deadlifts, bench presses, squats, and more… Cheering each other on, all of us doing this for stronger bones and better living, it’s quite something. Fast forward to a recent session - a friend and I ended up in conversation about what it’s like to feed people with different eating lifestyles. Which brought us to a sauce she loves iterating on, made with just three ingredients: walnuts, miso, and nutritional yeast. When I considered this for a minute, I realized I had a new adventure waiting for me. Ever since we spoke I’ve been tinkering around in my mind what that sauce would look like, and then my thoughts roam to what would it pair well with…

So for you, I set time aside to experiment in the kitchen this week, and I’m happy to report that the results are a truly wonderful sauce! Not only is there the recipe for it below, I’m also including THREE terrific ways to use it.

Every way you can think to use this sauce produces seriously tasty eating that can be thrown together in just minutes. A godsend for busy people.

It is sauces like this that save me while I do layers of prep to deliver on a number of other projects: This week alone, I prepped for and then hosted a special 8-course tasting on Monday. Today, cottage guests arrive, who will enjoy their own 4-course dinner. In the midst, I’m also promoting a winter edition supper club… It’ll conjure all the good feelings and warmth of the Norwegian “Vinterferie” winter holiday. If you’re local, it’s on February 8 - join us!

…All this to say, with how busy so many of us are these days, having a few simple, punchy sauces just like this really do transform daily sustenance into more interesting eating.

The ingredients themselves aren’t exactly new. So, why is this sauce so great?

We can thank miso for the funky depth of this sauce. It tastes as savory as anchovies or fish sauce, but here it’s just fermented beans - in this case white miso. This is especially nice if you’re cooking for vegetarians or vegans (or if that’s you!). I’m sure a barley or chickpea miso would produce extremely delicious results, likely with even deeper flavor. I’m going to try versions using them, next...

Walnuts bring the body and a soft earthiness. Toasting walnuts is key - it removes the “greenness” untoasted nuts often have, brings forth their aromatic oils, and enriches them to crave-worthy status. I love the healthy fats derived from walnuts, but you won’t feel like you’re eating “health food” dipping into this. I will never share a recipe with you just because it is healthy. It must always deliver on flavor, first. If we’re not eating with zeal, what even is the point? I’ve been eating this sauce by the spoonful and I have a feeling I won’t be alone on this. ;)

Then there’s the nutritional yeast… Mostly regarded as a holdover from the bohemian 70s, nutritional yeast is earning more respect, and honestly, a well-deserved place in many contemporary recipes. Nutritional yeast imparts a “cheesiness” via umami carried by amino acids, including glutamic acid, that is part of its production. To add to this, during its drying process nutritional yeast is also toasted, which further enhances its flavor. In this recipe, nutritional yeast brings a roundness to the end results. You could add more than I did and I’m sure it would be tasty, but in this version, I enjoyed that no one ingredient dominated. In the end the flavors meld into something addictively good.

Miso-walnut sauce