The Culture Whisper guide to friendly bacteria
You might have noticed something a little lively raising its head in the food industry recently. Fermented foods, and so-called 'good bacteria' are all the rage. Recent studies have linked a healthy gut with anything and everything, from perfect skin and leaner figure, to a good night’s sleep.
A particular concern is that the modern Western diet has led to much less diversity in our gut bacteria, which could be negatively affecting our wellbeing, as well as our waistlines. So people are looking to fermented foods and other ‘probiotics’, full of friendly bacteria, to top up the good guys in their gut. Marylebone restaurant High Mood Food has even made them its USP.
Most interestingly, there’s a school of thought that a happy tummy also leads to a happy mind.
But what are these wonder foods, and where can you find them in the capital?
Made by fermenting soybeans with salt and koji bacteria, as well as other ingredients such as rice, miso is a staple of Japanese cuisine.
The most common type found in the UK is basic rice miso as either white miso (shiromiso) or red miso (akamiso), but in Japan there are hundreds of regional varieties. Epicurian Londoners are starting to discover the sheer diversity on offer and experimenting far beyond the standard soups dished up on the side in sushi shops. You can easily get hold of barley miso (tsugimiso) or brown rice miso these days, so why not give it a go.
Where to find it: Stock up at the Japan Centre and try roasting aubergines in it, al la Anna Jones, or if you’re going out we can heartily recommend the walnut miso udon noodles at Koya Bar on Frith Street.