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-mustardy. But then, the sweetness is tempered—by the funky miso, sharp sake, and sharper rice wine vinegar.

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. But you can also just keep it simple. Slather nuta onto a fluffy baguette, with mayo, pickles, ribbons of turkey, and top with shredded lettuce. Or, toss spicy salad greens (arugula, frisee, or radicchio are all welcome here) with crisped bacon, some of the bacon fat, and a spoonful of nuta. —Coral Lee
  • PREP TIME2 hours 10 minutes
  • COOK TIME35 minutes
  • SERVES2-4
Ingredients 
  • 6 tablespoons white miso
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 4 teaspoons unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon sake
  • 1 tablespoon mirin
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons mustard powder (such as Colman's)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
  • 1/ 1/2 pounds (about 4) bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, patted dry
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 2 delicata squash, seeded and quartered on the bias
  • 5 cups bitter salad greens (such as arugula or frisée)
  • 1 pinch flaky salt and freshly ground black pepper, for finishing