If you look up “umami” in the dictionary I’m pretty sure you’ll see a picture of this dish.
Miso Fried Rice would undoubtedly be pretty heavenly all on its own, but let’s go ahead and add brown butter because it is the greatest ingredient in the whole entire world and I would eat it on a tree branch if you served it to me that way. And because that’s not quite enough to completely blow your mind we’re going to make some dark soy sauce glazed, super crispy cremini mushrooms and kale.
If there’s anything I must disclose about this dish it’s that it’s pretty salty… probably why I love it so much. So if you’re cautious about your sodium intake you may want to reevaluate your relationship with me right here. This dish definitely satisfies my salty tooth. Both miso and dark soy are very salty ingredients, but you can lesson that load by just simply using a bit less miso, unsalted butter and lower sodium soy sauce. It would still be pretty darn yummy. Or, maybe you just want to go in a completely different direction and for that, my friend, I’m here to help with that too.
You see, we love fried rice around here (at least I love fried rice and therefore the other people in the house are made to eat it frequently) and I find it a great way to use up whatever I have on hand in a very tasty way. A couple other favourites:
For now, I’ll let you know how I make this Miso Fried Rice…
Miso Fried Rice, the details.
I won’t lie and tell you that you absolutely must make this dish with cold, leftover rice because there have been many times when the fried rice craving hits and I don’t have any leftover rice on hand. So, I make rice in my rice cooker and then immediately make fried rice with freshly cooked rice! And I am still alive.
However, it is better with leftover rice, so I’ll leave you to decide for yourself how you want to handle that.
Once you’ve decided on your rice prep, you’re going to get your oven really hot and toss your kale and mushrooms together with some oil and dark soy sauce. A little goes a long way here because dark soy sauce is thicker and stronger than regular soy, but the flavour is just heavenly. You’re going to throw the veg in the oven for 10 minutes and make your rice in the meantime.
In a large skillet or wok you’ll melt your butter over medium heat and let it bubble away until it browns. Then you’ll toss in some garlic and red pepper flakes followed by some olive oil (a little sesame oil would be good here too). Let that sizzle for a minute and then stir in the miso followed by the rice. Stir fry the rice until well coated with the butter-miso mixture and nice and hot, then remove to a serving dish.
Take the mushrooms and kale out of the oven and scoop them all on top of the rice. If you like, you can add some sliced green onion and sesame seeds, or you can just tuck right in.
Tips, tricks, substitutions
- Miso – I use white miso paste in this recipe because it’s the kind I always have on hand. It’s the mildest variety of miso, but red miso or really any other kind will work too. More on the different types here.
- Mushrooms – I always buy cremini mushrooms because they have a richer flavour and also because I like the way they look. 🙂 You can use any mushrooms for this dish though.
- Brown Rice – short grain brown rice is possibly my favourite rice. I just love the texture… small little orbs that kind of pop in your mouth. If long grain brown rice is what you have it will work just fine and even white rice would be fantastic.
- Soy Sauce – I use dark soy sauce in this recipe because it gives a real salty, rich punch. You can sub in regular soy sauce, but know that it’s thinner and less flavourful so you might want to only add 2 teaspoons and combine it with a pinch of sugar.
- Add-ins – You can easily add a protein to this fried rice. Pork, chicken, egg and tofu all work beautifully. I would recommend cooking it in the skillet before cooking the butter and then removing it to a plate to be added back in with the rice.
FAQs?
If you want to know the definition of umamai, miso is it. It’s savoury, salty, rich and kind of funky in the very best way.
Recipe-ish…
Let me know what you think!
Miso Fried Rice with Brown Butter, Crispy Kale and Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb cremini mushrooms halved
- 3 cups kale chopped
- 1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
- 4 Tbsp olive oil divided
- 3 cups short grain brown rice cooked and cooled
- 3 Tbsp butter
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 – 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 Tbsp white miso
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 450 degrees.
- Toss the mushrooms and the kale with 2 Tbsp oil and the soy sauce and spread out on a baking sheet.
- Place in the oven for 10 minutes.
- Melt the butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Let it cook until it turns brown and jut as it’s starting to turn, add in the garlic and the red pepper flakes.
- Add in the remaining 2 Tbsp oil and the miso and turn the heat down to low.
- Whisk the butter mixture until well combined.
- Add in the rice and stir until well coated and heated through.
- Remove to a serving dish and top with the kale and mushrooms.
If you like this warm Miso Fried Rice Recipe please go try my Recipe for Creamy Udon Carbonara with Miso and Garlic. Another fun way to get more miso in your life.
