My fingers are tingling. The long wait is over. How did it turn out? Is it edible? I’ve been waiting since July 2014 to see how my last batch of miso turned out. Two summers ago, I filled a crock with mashed, cooked soybeans, salt and an inoculation of aspergillus oryzae fungus, and set it on a windowsill to ferment through the summer, winter, and a second summer.

The weight and lid are off. The miso under the seal looks tempting. I peel the seal off and taste. Fantastic. Slow food at its best. This is real home cooking. After several successful attempts at making miso, I’m prepared to make multiple batches, try different combinations of soybeans and grains, and wait, and wait, and wait.