History of Natto and Its Relatives (1405-2012 - SoyInfo Center

“Wash the soybean and boil it (fl uffy boiled until soft).
After it is fully cooked, strain the water and mix it with corn
dust (maize fl our) and put in an airtight bag. Keep it in a
place with high temperature for at least 3 days. Some prefer
to eat it as soon as it is fermented, some prefer to dry it (in
the sun) and keep it for over a year...”
“Method of cooking: For cooking ingredients: Soak in
hot water (if dried) for one hour before cooking.
“Cooking ingredients: Oil, onions, tomato and salt
(to taste). Heat cooking oil and fry onions; add a pinch of
turmeric and the kinema and cook until brown; then add
tomatoes and a little bit of water (some prefer to take it as a
soup by adding a little more water to the above ingredients)
and salt to taste. Continue cooking for about 10-15 minutes.
Then it should be ready to be served.
“This information was prepared by Manju Shrestha,
February 1984.” Address: Project Supervisor, IADS,
International Agricultural Development Service, P.O. Box
1336, Kathmandu, Nepal. Phone: 21425. Cable: Iadservis,
Kathmandu.
1025. Sterngold, James. 1984. On foot in Hokkaido: Much
of the northern isle is parkland. New York Times. April 29. p.
XX9, XX32.
• Summary: The writer stays at a spa near Mount Asahi.
The standard Japanese breakfast begins with a bowl of rice
and salty broiled fi sh, generally salmon. “Then there is
natto. This is a gooey, though plain tasting, concoction of
fermented soybeans said to be packed with nutrition, but a
little much for some sensibilities fi rst thing in the morning.
Even many Japanese wrinkle their noses at the mention of
natto the way many Americans do the fi rst time they hear of
eating raw fi sh. Also common are raw egg and nori [pressed
seaweed], which are eaten with the rice.”
1026. Jacobs, Susan. 1984. The Cultured Club. Fantastic
fermented foods. Vegetarian Times. April. p. 44-45, 47-48.
• Summary: Includes a brief introduction to tempeh,
fermented tofu, miso, natto, and tamari soy sauce.
1027. Leviton, Richard. 1984. Japanese soyfoods. In:
Camille Cusumano. 1984. Tofu, Tempeh, & Other Soy
Delights. Emmaus, Pennsylvania: Rodale Press. x + 261 p.
See p. 144-49.
• Summary: Contents: Brief biography of Leviton and
introduction. Deep-fried and grilled tofu treats: age,
atsuage, ganmo, yaki-dofu, doufu-gan. Tofu haute cuisine
(at 280-year-old Sasa-no-Yuki in Tokyo, dried-frozen tofu,
wine-fermented tofu). Delights of soymilk and yuba (incl.
Yuba Han). Natto, miso, and savory soy condiments (incl.
Hamanatto or “savory fermented black soybeans,” thua nao
from Thailand, and natto miso). And still more: Cooked
soybeans with wakame, “soy sprouts packed in a sausagelike
clear tube, green soybeans in the pods, kinako powder (a
© Copyright Soyinfo Center 2012
HISTORY OF NATTO AND ITS RELATIVES 330
fl our made from dry roasted soybeans, used as a basis for
confections or nut butters), freeze-dried instant miso soup
powder, instant silken tofu powder (just add water and stir),
and dry meat sauces for tofu.” Address: 100 Heath Rd.,
Colrain, Massachusetts 01340. Phone: 413-624-5591.
1028. Singh, Minu. 1984. Kinema and other soyfoods in
Nepal (Interview). Conducted by William Shurtleff of
Soyfoods Center, May 25. 2 p. transcript.
• Summary: The name of this fermented soyfood is kinema
or kinima (not kenima); it is usually pronounced kee-NAYmuh.
The food is most widely consumed in Darjeeling
which is now in West Bengal, India (but was formerly part
of Nepal) and in southern Nepal. Typical Nepalis who speak
Hindi do not know this food, nor is it known in Kathmandu.
It is used mostly by non-Brahmins and it has a very strong
fl avor and smell; she did not like it. She knows how to make
kinema because a friend used to make it at her home. Boil
soybeans for about 2 hours (in Nepal mostly black soybeans,
and in Darjeeling some yellow soybeans are used). Pour the
cooked soybeans into banana leaves, cover very tightly, put
into a paper bag, then put in a warm place for 5 days. No
inoculant was used and at the end of the 5 days she recalls
that it “smelled terrible.” Wash the kinema then cook it with
tomatoes, ginger and garlic. After cooking it did not smell so
bad.
Note: This is the earliest document seen (Oct. 2010)
that uses the word “kinima” to refer to kinema, a fermented
soyfood from Nepal and a close relative of Nepalese kinema
and Japanese natto.
In Nepal, green vegetable soybeans are called hariyo
bhatmas (hariyo means “green” and bhatmas is the Nepali
word for soybean). They are consumed all over Nepal, boiled
in the pods, then the green beans are removed and eaten as
is with a little salt as a snack; sometimes they are seasoned
with black pepper or hot chili, and sometimes they are used
in a curry with potatoes. Whole dry soybeans are soaked
overnight then cooked with potatoes.
She worked with the Peace Corps for 9 years as a
language coordinator. In about 1980 she worked on a project
with the Peace Corps making roasted soy fl our at a Nepal
maternity home. They called it Poshilo Bito (“Nutrition
Flour”). They would mix dry soybeans with some corn,
barley and wheat. Roast the mixture, grind it, put it in
packets, and distribute it free of charge to the poor and to
hospitals. She also taught these people how to make it. To
prepare: Mix the fl our with boiling milk or water. Address:
2708 Virginia St., Berkeley, California 94709. Phone: 415-
848-1481.
1029. Yamanaka, Mitsuaki. 1984. Re: The work of Takashin
Ltd. with tempeh in Japan. Letter to William Shurtleff at
Soyfoods Center, May. 3 p. [Jap]
• Summary: Our company, Takashin, Ltd. (Takashin