To test this feature, visit your live site.

Fermented foods

Are you big into fermented foods like natto, miso, pickles, etc.? Do you recommend some makers from your region? In Chiba Prefecture where I live, there are a number of soy sauce brewers. You can read about my experiences of Soy Sauce Exploring in Chiba. I'm also curious about mirin and other condiments.

11 comments

11 Comments

Amanda

Jun 25, 2023

I love kimchi! I don’t have any specific brands to recommend, but sometimes I get a sore tongue I think from an imbalance of bacteria in my body and I love to eat kimchi and American pickles to equal out my good bacteria.

Tone&Edo

Jun 26, 2023

Replying to

Ah, some sources I read say kimchi has probiotic qualities that knock down candida. Kimchi is a staple in my kitchen, too.

urara

Jun 20, 2023

I made pickles for the first time the other day, using spring ginger.

It was a first for me and I made things easy by buying an already-made mix at the supermarket.

I used a mix similar to this.

Next time I will try to do it myself since it is basically vinegar and sugar😅 let's avoid preservatives

I don't have a picture of the result but it is the pinkish thin ginger slices that you have the kaiten sushi restaurant sometimes. It is called 新生姜甘酢漬け in Japanese.

Also if you're interested in making vegetables pickles the easy way you can buy something like this à the supermarket:

You just have to pour it onto Amy vegetables and it will pickle easily. I think it's great for ppl who don't want to bother preparing the vinegar and sugar mix when doing some pickles.

urara

Jun 09, 2023

Sorry for the late reply here I was kinda busy the last 2 weeks. In my area (I live in Nagoya), there is the Hatcho Miso from Okazaki city. Its color is close to dark red and it is only produced by 2 factories (that you can visit for free) located in Okazaki. The taste of Hatcho Miso is very strong compared to white or mixed miso. If you've ever had miso katsu, which is a food specialty of Nagoya, this is the taste.

Here a link to a blog in English that explains it better (link to the Hatcho Miso factories included):

https://www.nagoyaisnotboring.com/what-is-hatcho-miso/

Tone&Edo

Jun 09, 2023

Replying to

It looks like you can get hatcho miso on Amazon and at some supermarkets in other regions. I'll keep my eyes peeled for it.

That's an awesome website to promote Nagoya. If I make a trip to Kansai, the city is on my list!

urara

Jun 20, 2023

Replying to

Thank you for the lovely feedback on the website. I know one of the ppl running it ^^ I'll tell her you like it.

mikekato

Jun 25, 2023

Replying to

I love hatcho miso. And miso katsu too! It's one of my son's favorite for miso-shiru too. Kyushu is nearly all awase-miso, especially with dashi in it. Dashi is huge in Kyushu, with the notable one being ago-dashi (made with flying fish).

Locals tend to put dashi in everything. Sadly, though, few people make dashi by boiling fish, kombu, or mushrooms. I don't always do this, but I do it fairly often, especially in winter. Fresh dashi is so much more pungent—a combination of flavor and smell. Of course, dashi is a bit off-topic since it's not fermented.

In addition to kuro-ninniku, another black fermented item that's more common than most of Japan is kuro-zu—black vinegar. I see it on shelves occasionally but it is more expensive than other kinds of vinegar. I use vinegar regularly. In addition to foods and occasionally tsukemono, I use it once a week to make cottage cheese. I used to buy cottage cheese regularly, but making it is better. The curds are bigger and more rich in flavor. It's easy to make so I recommend it highly.

mikekato

Jun 08, 2023

I've recently started making nuka-zuke pickles. Since I live away from my family, I have tried to find ways of using leftover veggies. I made tsukemono last year, too, but this year I've started doing it with kome-nuka. It's pungent but awesome.

Also, I have found a relatively good source of kuro-ninniku (black garlic). Black garlic is fermented. I've learned that it can be done in a rice cooker. Of course, the cooker gets the garlic smell, so it has to be done in a dedicated device. I have not tried it nor do I intend to. But the black garlic is awesome.

Tone&Edo

Jun 08, 2023

Replying to

Wow, nuka-zuke seems like a lot of effort. Do you turn yours every day? How long can you maintain the nukadoko? A neighbor gave me some black garlic she made in an old rice cooker. She says she put the rice cooker on the veranda because it's too odiferous. The result is amazing!

mikekato

Jun 08, 2023

Replying to

Nah, I don't turn it every day. I like it better when the veggies really pickle.

I don't know how long it lasts, but when we made it at home in East L.A. growing up, I think my mom pretty much had it going perpetually. I think she added some komenuka now and then, but I don't really remember. I plan to add some eventually, but for now, it seems to be going quite well.

I was pickling in miso last year and in sweet vinegar (a high quality one for making sushi-meshi) earlier in the year, but I like nuka-zuke.

Yeah, I heard that about the rice cooker. The result is amazing. I put it in spaghetti yesterday. It was fabulous.

I like using shio-koji a lot when cooking, too. I find it a perfect substitute for salt.

Tone&Edo

Jun 09, 2023

Replying to

Thanks for the insights!

I make quick pickles a lot - cucumber, celery, carrots in a bath of osu, shoyu, a dash each of sugar and katsuo dashi and topped up with water. They keep for about a week in the fridge. What's your pickling like? Woah, shio-koji in cooking..Does it impart a different taste?