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

served hot or cold. There was cold soba “in baskets with a
dipping sauce [made with soy sauce], soba topped with natto
(fermented soy beans) and sprinkled with sesame seeds...”
There is now a soba restaurant in New York City named
Honmura An. Contains four soba recipes plus recipes for
dashi (basic stock) and tempura. All of the soba recipes call
for soy sauce, as does the tempura dipping sauce.
1374. Hara, Toshio; Nagatomo, Shinichiro; Ogata, S.;
Ueda, S. 1991. Molecular structure of the replication origin
of a Bacillus subtilis (natto) plasmid, pUH1. Applied and
Environmental Microbiology 57(6):1838-41. June. [21 ref]
• Summary: “The structure of a 2.0-kb [kilobase molecular
weight] BstEII DNA sequence necessary and suffi cient
for the replication of a 5.7-kb Natto plasmid, pUH1,” has
been characterized. This plasmid is responsible for gammapolyglutamate
production by Bacillus subtilis (natto).
Figures show: (1) Derivation of plasmids used in the
present study; each is circular. 2. Structure and replication
activity of the modifi ed fragments of the 2.0-kb ori fragment.
(3) The nucleotide sequence of the 2.0-kb BstEII fragment
(this fi gure fi lls an entire page). (4) Comparison of the
amino acid sequences of rep of pUH1, rep of pFTB14, repB
of pIB110, and protein A of pC194. Address: Microbial
Genetics Division, Institute of Genetic Resources, Faculty
of Agriculture, Kyushu University, Hakozaki, Fukuoka 812,
Japan.
1375. Miso, shôyu no rûtsu wa doko ka? O-shôyu sukii
tanken-tai [Where are the roots of miso and shoyu? Two
shoyu-lovers go exploring in China]. 1991. Television
broadcast. Channel 26. California. June 9. Sat. 8-9 P.M. [Jap]
• Summary: This program is part of the series “Shin Sekai
Kikô” (New World Homeward Voyage). In Japan, the
two explorers fi rst visit two historic places in Wakayama
prefecture: In one shop, Kinzanji miso is still made. The
Buddhist monk Kakushin from Shinshu in Japan learned to
make this miso from a temple named Kinzanji in southern
China. They also visit Kadocho, a shop where shoyu is still
made in the ancient way. They then travel to China, arriving
in Shanghai, and go directly to Hangchow (also spelled
Hangchou; Pinyin: Hangzhou; Japanese: Kôshu), the capital
of Chekiang province, located a little to the southwest. In
the market there they fi nd a relative of Kinzanji miso, named
tien tou-shih (sweet fermented black soybeans) sold at a soy
sauce shop.
The shop owners suggest that they go to Chungking
(pinyin: Chongching; Japanese: Jûkei), a major city in
Szechuan province, to learn more. There they fi nd tou-shih,
which resembles Japan’s Hamanatto or Daitokuji Natto.
Then they visit the ruins of Kinzanji temple where Kakushin
learned to make miso. After walking up a long, steep rock
path they discover that only a historic bell tower is left.
Now they travel to Yunnan province, in central southern
© Copyright Soyinfo Center 2012
HISTORY OF NATTO AND ITS RELATIVES 425
China, wedged between Vietnam and Burma. They arrive
at Kunming (pinyin: Kungming; Japanese: Konme). In
this area the weather is semi-tropical and many types of
fermented foods are made. Now they travel 800 miles by
car to the southern tip of Yunnan to a mountain village
named Shisan Panna. There lives the primitive Aini tribe, in
thatched houses with barefoot children. An elderly woman
shows them how she makes miso. Roast the soybeans in a
wok, then add water and cook. Pour into a bamboo basket (1
foot diameter, 10 inches deep) lined with a banana leaf, fold
the ends of the leaf over the top, and place then basket on
a rack over the open-hearth fi replace sunk in the middle of
the room’s fl oor (Jap: irori) for 2-3 days so that the warmth
aids the fermentation. Transfer the fermented soybeans to
a wooden mortar, add salt and hot chilies (no grain), then
pound to a paste. Shape this into 3-4 inch diameter patties,
put these on a shallow 2.5 foot diameter bamboo tray, and
place on the rooftop in the sun for 3 days. Broil the patties
directly over the fi re, put in a mortar, add more salt and
chilies, and pound to a paste. Now add boiling water and
serve. The result is a spicy miso soup with a bit of a natto
fl avor (Japanese: natto-jiru). Thus, the Japanese apparently
did not invent miso soup! Address: Japan.
1376. Toyo Shinpo (Soyfoods News).1991. Nattô no chihô
betsu shijô mapu (Heisei 2 nendo): Tsuini 1,000 okuen no
ôdai toppa, shôhi no hanbun was kantô ga shimeru [Map
of natto’s market share by region in 1990: Finally broke
100,000,000,000 yen goal, one half of the consumption was
in Kantô (Tokyo-Yokohama) area]. July 21. [Jap]
• Summary: A stylized map of Japan, from north to south,
contains the following information for natto sales by region
(listed from north to south):
Hokkaido 7,237 million yen.
Tohoku region 11,222 million yen.
Hokuriku 4,372 million yen.
Kanto region 51,557 million yen.
Tokai region 7,210 million yen.
Kinki region 9,297 million yen.
Chugoku region 2,966 million yen.
Shikoku island 1,275 million yen.
Kyushu island 8,355 million yen.
Okinawa island 396 million yen.
Japan national total 102,745 million yen.
The three largest regions for natto sales (in descending
order of sales amount) are:
(1) Kanto region 51,557 million yen.
(2) Tohoku region 11,222 million yen.
(3) Kinki region 9,297 million yen.
Note: The Kantô region of Japan is a is a geographical
area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region
includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven
prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo,
Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more