Fusion

Well, if you can't change the world, you can at least cook! Last night I followed a recipe from the Sunday magazine of "The Age," the Melbourne newspaper I read every morning. (http://www.theage.com.au is the online edition.) I tried the recipe out of curiosity, as I really couldn't imagine what it would taste like, or that it would taste good, and because it seemed an example of the distinctive Australian "fusion" cuisine I'd been told about. That it's relatively effortless helped too!

Miso, Leek and Tomato Risotto

Preheat oven to 200C. Place 1 litre water, 2 Tbs red miso paste, 1 Tbsp light soy sauce and a pinch of sugar in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat, stirring, until miso is dissolved. Place a splash of light olive oil in a flameproof casserole dish over high heat and stir-fry 1 large leek (washed well and thinly sliced) for 2-3 minutes. Add 1.5 cups short-grain rice and stir for 1 minute. Add 3 roma tomatoes (chopped) and stir for 1 minute. Add the hot stock and stir. Cover pan with a tight-fitting lid and cook in the oven for 30 minutes. Stir through 1/2 cup grated parmesan, 1 Tbsp butter and 1/2 cup parsley (roughly chopped). Serve with extra parmesan on top.

Miso in risotto?! Just what I wondered. Risotto in the oven!? My reaction exactly. But it worked, opening up whole new avenues for experimentation!

I made it for my long-suffering hosts, K (no relation of Kafka's K, so far as I know) and A, and we finished off the whole pot. But use more miso, perhaps even twice what the recipe demands. And sprinkling toasted sesame seeds on top instead of extra parmesan might be an even better start for the delicious seesaw of east and west.