Whiskey Butter Blasted Collard Stems, Marcona Almonds, Caramelized Koji, and Pecorino

I like doing my part to reduce unnecessary food waste. The chefs I look up to leave me feeling inspired with how they transform scraps and odd ends, turning them into centerpieces. On the one hand, it’s not rocket science. Chefs have to look out for their bottom line; stretching ingredients and making the most out of absolutely everything is essential to keeping costs in check. On the other hand, there is an opportunity to flex some artistic and creative muscle when repurposing something that is destined for the landfill. I like to think it has the potential to inspire anyone to see things differently.

Unfortunately, but also fortunately for me, my restaurant does not do a good job at keeping food waste down. I rescued a couple of pounds of collard greens stems destined for the restaurant landfill this week. When cooked, they’re sweet and tender, just like asparagus. I blasted them over super high heat with my amazake beurre monté, seasoned with salt, and splashed in some of my burdock root vinegar. (Some day I will get around to writing a proper recipe for that vinegar, but in the meantime, just know that I juiced burdock root and stirred in some active kombucha. A month went by, and viola.)

I garnished the stems with pecorino (why not? I thought,) and some delicious crushed Marcona almonds. But the real takeaway treat for me was the caramelized buckwheat koji crisps.

I figured this recipe ought to be the perfect opportunity to finally write down how to make koji, although you should know that you will find better, more scientifically backed and systematized koji making instruction in Koji Alchemy. In order to make koji you will need koji spores, which you will inoculate on the grain or starch of your choice. In my case, I chose buckwheat groat.

There are several different ways you can go about creating an incubation chamber. In order to grow your koji, you will need to regulate it at a temperature and relative humidity of 90F for at least 48 hours. Interestingly, my buckwheat groat koji took as long as 72 hours, possibly because I didn't soak the groat overnight.

My incubation set-up was as simple as placing the inoculated grain in a plastic tub and plastic wrapping it. I poked three or four finger sized holes for some of the humidity to escape. I placed the plastic tub in my oven with the light on, followed the necessary regulatory steps, and in 72 hours, I had my buckwheat groat koji. 

Anyhow, I learned about this caramelized koji during a virtual masterclass at KojiCon, as was taught by Nicco Muratore, head chef of Mamnoon restaurant in Seattle. The process is simply to caramelize the koji grain at a low temperature in the oven until it becomes a sweet, funky crisp. Funnily enough, it has become one of my favorite topping garnishers. I have so far enjoyed putting the crisps on everything, from pizza, to salad (goodbye croutons!), to eggs, and on and on.

My recipe will make for a nice side, or even a main, if you add on a fried egg, which I highly recommend. The stems pick up a bit of malty goodness from the amazake beurre monté while the vinegar splash refreshes their crisp, sweet flavor. The pecorino adds a lovely umami flavor as the Marcona almonds lend their sweet, creamy notes into the mix. The caramelized buckwheat koji is the wildcard. Heady notes of gingerbread and pineapple abound. This one is fun!

For the buckwheat groat koji:
(Yields 1 pound of inoculated koji)

• 1 quart buckwheat groat, dry toasted
• Water, enough to just cover
• 3 tablespoon approx. koji spores defused into flour

For the rest of the dish:
(Serves 2-3)

• Around 20 collard greens stems
• 2 tablespoon amazake beurre monté
• Sea salt, to taste
• A splash of burdock root vinegar, or Sherry vinegar
• Marcona almonds, to garnish
• Pecorino Romano, to garnish
• Caramelized koji, to garnish

To make buckwheat groat koji: Preheat your oven to 350F. In a large dutch oven, gently dry toast the buckwheat groat over medium flame, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes. Once you can smell that it has toasted, pour in just enough lukewarm water to cover the groat. Place a lid on the pot transfer to the oven, allowing the buckwheat cook for thirty minutes.

Transfer the cooked buckwheat groat to a baking sheet to begin the process of cooling. When the temperature of the groat registers between 95-100F, sift in the defused koji spores. Mix well with your hand, ensuring even and total exposure. Transfer the groat to your incubation chamber. Note any temperature changes; the koji generates its own heat and can die if it reaches temperatures above 115F. After 24 hours you will start to notice mycelium growth occurring, as well as the development of wonderful fruity, bready aromas. To ensure thermal regulation and airflow, use a clean hand to stir the koji around every 12 hours or so, until the koji has reached maturation, somewhere between 48-72 hours. The koji can be stored in the refrigerator for several weeks, or longer in the freezer.

To caramelize the koji: Preheat your oven to 200F. Crumble some koji on a baking sheet and let cook in the oven, checking regularly, until the koji turns crisp, sweet, and dry, about 2 hours. I made a caramelized koji oil, simply by combining with olive oil and some roasted garlic. The koji crisp oil will save quite well in the fridge. Alternatively, you can powder the caramelized koji into flour. Or you can leave it as is. 

To make the rest of the dish: Preheat your largest sauté pan over high heat until red hot. Add the collard stems to the pan and let cook undisturbed for a few minutes. If you have a small lid or a weight, you can use it to press down on the collards. After a few minutes, add the amazake beurre monté to the pan. Carefully swirl the contents of the pan around to distribute the butter evenly on the bottom. Season the collards with some sea salt and stir the contents of the pan for even coating of the butter and salt. Place a lid on the pan and let the collards steam for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and splash in some burdock root vinegar, or Sherry.

To serve, place the cooked collard stems on a plate. Grate some pecorino cheese directly over the stems. Follow with crushed Marcona almonds, and caramelized koji crisps. Serve warm.