You can find a lot of recipes that use Miso (Japanese fermented soy bean paste) to prepare sauces for pork loin steak or chops. However, I personally think the best way to combine Miso and pork is marinating. There are two logical reasons for this. First, Its enzyme helps tenderize the meat. Second, it also turns protein into deep Umami. You can never get these benefits just by pouring it as a sauce. Any type of Miso can basically be used for the marinade, but I personally prefer barley Miso from Kyushu as its mellow and slightly sweet flavours go absolutely well with pork.
Equipment
- 1 kitchen scale
- 1 Tablespoon
- 1 grater
- 1 small mixing bowl
- 1 pair tongs
- 1 large freezer bag
- 1 Paper towel
- 1 non-stick pan
- 1 tray or plate
- aluminum foil
Ingredients
- 1 kg Pork loin
- 2 tbsp Vegetable oil
-MARINADE-
- 200 g Mugi-Miso (Kyushu-Style Barley Miso)
- 4 tbsp Mirin
- 4 tbsp Sake
- ½ tbsp Soy sauce
- 1 clove Garlic grated
- 10 g Ginger grated
-SHREDDED CABBAGE SALAD-
- 300 g Cabbage shredded
- ½ Tomato cut into 4 wedges
- 8 slices Cucumber
- 4 tbsp Mayonnaise
Instructions
- Measure the ingredients for the marinade.
- Combine them all well in a bowl.
- Slice the pork loin in quarters, then prepare a freezer pack.
- Put the slices of the loin and the marinade in the bag. Distribute the sauce by rubbing over the bag to cover the loin with it.
- Let it marinate in the fridge for a day or 2.
- After marinating, take the loin out of the bag and wipe off the miso well will a paper towel.
- Heat the oil in an non-stick pan over high heat.
- Add the loin into the pan and drop the heat to medium low and slowly cook for 5~7 minutes. Pay attention to the heat to prevent Miso from burning the loin from becoming tough.
- Flip the slices over and cook for another 5~7 minutes, being careful with the heat.
- Take them out onto a tray and cover with aluminum foil, then let them rest 5 minutes.
- Take them out and slice into bite size strips. Keep the juice from the meat on the tray.
- Serve the Miso Pork on a plate with the shredded cabbage salad. Pour over the juice on the tray.
