I sent everything through the blender after coarsely chopping it, then treated it like a tasty paste, i.e. held 5 days at 140F. There was significant breakdown of the fiber for sure, but these were the tough bits to begin with, and there was a lot of fiber remaining...
Something you could try next time would be more of a garum consistency, using more water. So you'd still have the fibers to deal with, but the bulk of the material would pass much more easily through the strainer.
That's a good idea, but one of the things I like about the tasty pastes is that they aren't shio kojis: they're sort of short-cut misos, and they use up more scraps than a "shio koji with additives" make. As it turns out, I did have to add some water to get the initial blend without killing my Blendtec (sweet cheezuz do I ever put that thing through its paces) so what came through the strainer (with a lot of work) was runnier than the intended product anyway.
Too late! Already used the fat juicy parts of the scapes in a lovely fried rice, and the less desirable bits in a kojified tasty paste. Learned the hard way (for at least the third time!) that a fine mesh strainer and a spatula really IS the best way to separate fiber from the smoother bits. Past efforts have involved a food mill (worthless) and a chinois, (hardly better) and this time I tried using my Johnny Appleseed sauce/juicer (which does a great job on tomatoes and on brambleberries for getting rid of the seeds and skins and giving the pulp and juice) but that was a failed detour that yielded nothing of value, involved a lot of cleanup, and left me back with the strainer and the spatula. I guess it just seems like a lot of work to push the pulp through the strainer. I'll get over it. LOL.
How finely did you chop/blend the scapes before kojification? And how long did you ferment it? You may find that the enzymes and microbes will break down a lot of that fiber with a mechanical head start and a long fermentation.
I sent everything through the blender after coarsely chopping it, then treated it like a tasty paste, i.e. held 5 days at 140F. There was significant breakdown of the fiber for sure, but these were the tough bits to begin with, and there was a lot of fiber remaining...
Something you could try next time would be more of a garum consistency, using more water. So you'd still have the fibers to deal with, but the bulk of the material would pass much more easily through the strainer.
That's a good idea, but one of the things I like about the tasty pastes is that they aren't shio kojis: they're sort of short-cut misos, and they use up more scraps than a "shio koji with additives" make. As it turns out, I did have to add some water to get the initial blend without killing my Blendtec (sweet cheezuz do I ever put that thing through its paces) so what came through the strainer (with a lot of work) was runnier than the intended product anyway.
Ohhh-! Would love to try this next time! Thanks for the inspiration-
You're welcome!
Too late! Already used the fat juicy parts of the scapes in a lovely fried rice, and the less desirable bits in a kojified tasty paste. Learned the hard way (for at least the third time!) that a fine mesh strainer and a spatula really IS the best way to separate fiber from the smoother bits. Past efforts have involved a food mill (worthless) and a chinois, (hardly better) and this time I tried using my Johnny Appleseed sauce/juicer (which does a great job on tomatoes and on brambleberries for getting rid of the seeds and skins and giving the pulp and juice) but that was a failed detour that yielded nothing of value, involved a lot of cleanup, and left me back with the strainer and the spatula. I guess it just seems like a lot of work to push the pulp through the strainer. I'll get over it. LOL.
How finely did you chop/blend the scapes before kojification? And how long did you ferment it? You may find that the enzymes and microbes will break down a lot of that fiber with a mechanical head start and a long fermentation.