大陸ルーツの面影を残すおかず味噌
湯浅の金山寺味噌
お湯で溶いて味噌汁にするのではなく、食材として直接食べる「おかず味噌」。米・麦・大豆の３つの穀物を混ぜた独自の麹の漬け床に、塩漬けしておいたナスやキュウリ、ウリ、ショウガなどの夏野菜あわせて発酵させる「味噌と漬物の中間」のようなもの。ご飯にかけて丼にするととっても美味しい。お茶漬けにしても、お酒のアテにしても絶品。800年ほど前に中国から渡ってきた醤（ひしお）の原型を留める貴重な発酵食品だ。
Kinzanji Miso, a local specialty of Yuasa-cho in Wakayama Prefecture is a side-dish miso which retains the remnants of the continental origins of ancient China
Okazu miso is a type of miso that is not dissolved in hot water to turn it into miso soup, but is eaten directly as a side dish. It is somewhat “between miso and pickles” that is made by fermenting together an original koji made of three types of grains, namely rice, barley and soybean, mixed with salt-pickled summer vegetables, such as eggplant, gourd, cucumber, and ginger. Savor it by dropping several spoonfuls on top of a bowl of steamed rice. It also goes very well with ochazuke (rice with green tea) or as an appetizer for sake. It is treasured as valuable fermented food that retains the original form of Hishio Miso, which came from China about 800 years ago.
どう作って食べるか / HOW TO MAKE & EAT
❶蒸した大豆・米と炒った麦を混ぜ、麹にする。
❷麹と塩漬けにした夏野菜（ナス、ウリ等）を混ぜ、山椒やシソを薬味に樽に仕込む。
❸数ヶ月樽のなかで発酵・熟成させる。
★ 入れる野菜や味付け、熟成期間は仕込む蔵や家によってバリエーションがある。
❶Mix steamed soybeans and rice with roasted barley to prepare the koji.
❷Mix koji and salt-pickled summer vegetables (such as, eggplants and gourds), add sansho (Japanese pepper) and shiso leaves as condiments and rest them in a barrel.
❸Let it ferment and age in the barrel for several months.
★ There are variations in the types of vegetables pickled, methods of seasoning and length of aging the vegetables, depending on the conditions of the storage and preferences of each brewery and household.
ご飯のおともに
味噌汁には使わない
With rice
Do not use it for miso soup
▶食べられている地域 / Regions where it is eaten
和歌山はじめ近畿・東海地方
Wakayama and other prefectures in Kinki and Tokai regions
▶微生物の種類 / Types of microorganisms
麹菌、乳酸菌類、酵母類など
Koji-kin (Aspergillus oryzae), lactic acid bacteria, yeast, etc.