Following the success of their Peanut Rāyu, Dublin based company White Mausu have launched their latest product Cashew Crunch which, like its sister Peanut Rāyu, is causing quite a stir, literally and meteorically.

Katie Sanderson, who kick-started the White Mausu company, was born and grew up in Hong Kong and these recipes owe their influence to her time spent there.

Less spicy that Peanut Rāyu, Cashew Crunch also ticks all the great condiment boxes.  Ingredients include cashew nuts, miso, crispy garlic, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, maple, tamari, sunflower oil and salt. Chief among them for adding flavour in this instance is Miso. A key ingredient in Japanese cooking, Miso is a fermented paste that adds a salty, umami flavour wherever it is used. It is typically a cultured mixture of soybeans, a grain (like rice or barley), salt, and koji (a naturally occurring culture) and has been used since the eighth century or before. Because miso is a fermented food, it is a natural source of healthy probiotics and is beneficial for digestion.

While miso can take centre stage in dishes like Miso Soup, it can also add savoury flavour to dishes without overpowering the other flavours and that is exactly what it does here with the cashew nuts.  Particularity popular in Indian and Thai cooking, cashew nuts are creamy in texture but quite neutral in flavour making them a perfect partner for the miso, sweet maple and the deep, round flavours of the tamari. Cashew nuts are rich in iron, magnesium, zinc, copper, phosphorus, manganese and monounsaturated fatty acids that promote healthy levels of good cholesterol or "HDL", something you want to include in your daily diet and it couldn’t be easier than with this product. Versatile and packed full of flavour and texture, this is a definite friend in your larder. Use it as a finishing product, to top rice, veg, salad, eggs, dressings, whatever takes your fancy but grab yourself a jar quickly, it’s selling fast!