MAKES: About 1/2 cup
TIME: 10 minutes
Miso works well as a basting sauce for grilling, broiling, or roasting vegetables or tofu. (I especially like this sauce made with red miso on mushrooms.) You can use any miso (see The Basics of Miso) for the base, but it's best to pair stronger-tasting red miso with full-flavored vegetables so as not to overpower them; the converse is also true, as strong-tasting miso can drown out subtler tastes.
The sugar in the mirin helps promote browning and gives a deep sheen to whatever you're preparing. But if you don't have mirin (or if you can find only mirin that is essentially corn syrup), use honey, a sweet and fruity after-dinner-style wine, or for that matter sugar.
1/2 cup miso
1/4 cup mirin
Salt
Whisk together the miso and mirin in a small bowl until smooth. Taste and add salt if needed.
Use immediately or cover tightly and refrigerate for a day or two.
Variation
Sweet and Hot Miso Glaze. Mince 1 clove garlic and 1 small hot or medium fresh chile, like Thai or serrano; add them to the glaze mixture.
