I love gardening and I love experimenting with food. Last year I decided to try growing something I have seen but never tried, red shiso. I thought it was going to taste more like the Japanese green shiso that I am used to. Maybe mine is a different red shiso. It isn’t as floral and is a little bitter. It still has an herbal flavor and I think it is great in stirfry or added to salad. I also saw this recipe for marinated red shiso. My inspiration comes from https://cookingfox.at/home/pickled-shiso

This is a simple recipe and I am sure you can adapt this to other greens. First pick some shiso leaves. Wash and dry them.

Make the marinade using soy sauce, maple syrup, white vinegar, garlic and green onions. You can add jalapeno if you want this to be spicy.

In a clean jar, place a spoonful of marinade, layer with a couple leaves, a layer of marinade and keep repeating until you are done. I placed a pickle stone on top to keep the leaves submerged.

Place in the refrigerator and marinade for 24 hours or more. Eat as a side dish to your meals. It adds a nice salty flavor. Enjoy.

Pickled Red Shiso

• 1 1/2 cups of red shiso leaves
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• 1 garlic clove crushed
• 2 green only stalks chopped
• optional: jalapeno

Wash and dry the shiso leaves.

To make the marinade add the soy sauce, maple syrup, vinegar, crushed garlic and green onions together in a bowl. Mix well.

In a clean jar place a layer of marinade, then a layer of leaves, more marinade and repeat until all the leaves and marinade are used up. Make sure to top the leaves with a little marinade. Place a pickle stone on top to make sure the leaves stay submerged in the marinade. You can also use a small dish or some plastic wrap.

Refrigerate for 24 hours or more. Use this a side dish to our next meal. Enjoy.

For more recipes: Recipe List