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Prep time
2 hours 10 minutes
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Cook time
35 minutes
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Serves
2 to 4
Author Notes
If you've never heard of it before, nuta is a miso dressing that adds bright-yellow intrigue to otherwise simply prepared greens (blanched) or seafood (boiled). To be a “nuta” requires only the presence of white miso and vinegar. But the first nuta I ever tasted was a nuta with mustard, and upon tasting it, I wondered a) why you would ever leave the mustard out, and b) how I could make up for all this lost time pre-nuta. The first taste will remind you of honey mustard: puckery, a little sweet, a little spicy, and unmistakably yellow-mustard-y. But then, the sweetness is tempered—by the funky miso, sharp sake, and sharper rice wine vinegar. Definitely an awesome combination that should no longer be ignored for weeknight cooking and beyond.
The recipe below, for a sheet pan chicken and squash dinner, shows off nuta in two of my favorite ways: caramelized, transformed by heat, and raw, tossed with bitter greens. It also features rice vinegar, sake, and mirin. But you can also just keep it simple. Slather the nuta onto a fluffy baguette, with mayo, pickles, ribbons of turkey, and top with shredded lettuce. Or toss spicy salad greens (arugula, frisée, or radicchio are all welcome here) with crisped bacon, some of the bacon fat, and a spoonful of nuta. Whatever you choose to do with your verison of nuta, definitely let me know in the comments below. The possibilities for nuta are endless, and once you have a taste, you'll understand why. —Coral Lee
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Ingredients
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6 tablespoons
white miso
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4 teaspoons
unseasoned rice vinegar
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1 tablespoon
mirin
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1 tablespoon
sake
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1 tablespoon
sugar
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2 teaspoons
mustard powder (such as Colman's)
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1 1/2 teaspoons
kosher salt, divided
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1 1/2 pounds
skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (about 4), patted dry
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4 tablespoons
olive oil, divided
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2
delicata squash, seeded and quartered on the bias
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5 cups
bitter salad greens (such as arugula or frisée)
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1 pinch
flaky salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
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In a blender, blend the miso, vinegar, mirin, sake, sugar, mustard powder, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and 2 tablespoons of water until smooth. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the nuta for serving. Coat the chicken with the remaining nuta. Arrange in a shallow baking dish or plastic bag and let marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
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Heat the oven to 425°F. On a baking sheet, toss the squash with 2 tablespoons of the oil and the remaining 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Arrange the squash cut side down. Arrange the chicken around the squash and roast for 15 minutes. Turn the squash and continue to roast for another 15 to 20 minutes, until deeply caramelized.
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In a large bowl, whisk the reserved nuta with the remaining 2 tablespoons of the oil. Shower in the greens. With a claw hand, toss to coat the greens lightly in the dressing. Season with the flaky salt and black pepper. Serve with the chicken and squash.
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