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

tempeh–made from whole soybeans or okara (meatlike
texture), dawadawa/natto (meaty fl avor), soy yogurt (sogurt;
dairylike) and other soy dairy replacers, and fermented black
soybeans (salt-cured black beans). She is also studying tofu.
Jean has recently become a vegetarian (but not a vegan).
This type of research traces its roots back to the 1960s
when food uses of algae were studied. Address: Cornell
Univ., Dep. of Agricultural & Biological Engrg., Room 218
Riley Robb Hall, Ithaca, New York 14853. Phone: 607-255-
2297.
1579. Liu, KeShun. 1997. Agronomic characteristics,
production, and marketing. In: KeShun Liu. 1997. Soybeans:
Chemistry, Technology, and Utilization. Florence, Kentucky:
Chapman & Hall. xxvi + 532 p. See p. 1-24. Chap. 1. Index.
[36 ref]
• Summary: Contents: Introduction. Origin. Early history
in Europe. Early history in North America. Agronomic
characteristics: Seed morphology, germination and
seedling development, growing stages and maturity groups,
seed development, nitrogen fi xation, diseases and pests.
Harvesting, drying, and storage: Harvesting, drying, storage.
Marketing and trading. Grades, standards, and inspection.
Variety identifi cation. Food beans and oil beans.
Figures: (1.1) Graph of total annual soybean production
in the USA and worldwide from 1955 to 1994. World
production increased from 20 million metric tons (tonnes)
in 1955 to 138 million tonnes in 1994. Note the huge
increases in 1992 and 1994. The United States’ share of
the total has been dropping since the mid-1970s. (1.2) Pie
chart of market share of world soybean production by major
producing countries between 1994 and 1995. USA 50.5%,
Brazil 18.2%, China 11.8%, Argentina 9.2%, all other 10.3%.
(1.3) Structure of a soybean seed (line drawing). Hypocotyl,
radicle, micropyle, hilum, epicotyl, plumule, cotyledon, seed
coat. (1.4) Stages in germination and early seedling growth
(line drawing). (1.5) Map of geographical zones of the
American continent where soybean maturity groups are best
grown. Extends from OO in southern Canada down to X in
southern Central America and northern South America. (1.6)
Graph of equilibrium level of soybeans with the temperature
and relative humidity of the surrounding air. Moisture
content of soybeans is the third variable plotted. (1.7) Graph
of allowable storage time for soybeans as functions of bean
temperature and percentage moisture content. (1.8) Diagram
of the general fl ow of grain from the farm through the
distribution system to the domestic and overseas processor.
(1.9) Diagram of a general outline of soybean food use
based on classifi cation of oil and food beans. (1.10) Visual
differences between oil and food beans (photo). Left: oil
beans (3 cultivars in plastic bags). Right: food beans (top
and middle are two tofu bean cultivars, bottom is one smallseeded
natto bean cultivar).
Tables: (1.1) The U.S. grades and grade requirements for
© Copyright Soyinfo Center 2012
HISTORY OF NATTO AND ITS RELATIVES 490
soybeans. Address: PhD, Soyfood Lab., Hartz Seed, a Unit
of Monsanto, P.O. Box 946, Stuttgart, Arkansas 72160-0946.
Phone: 870-673-8565.
1580. Liu, KeShun. 1997. Fermented Oriental soyfoods. In:
KeShun Liu. 1997. Soybeans: Chemistry, Technology, and
Utilization. Florence, Kentucky: Chapman & Hall. xxvi +
532 p. See p. 218-96. Chap. 5. Index. [127 ref]
• Summary: Contents: Introduction. Fermented soy paste
(jiang and miso): Varieties of miso and jiang, koji and
microorganisms involved, koji starter and its preparation,
Chinese jiang preparation (traditional household method,
pure culture method, enzymatic method), Japanese miso
preparation (rice koji preparation, treatment of soybeans,
mixing and mashing, fermentation, pasteurization and
packaging), principles of jiang and miso preparation,
major factors in jiang and miso making (raw materials,
cooking temperature and time, conditions during koji
preparation, proportions of ingredients, fermentation
conditions, novel processing for special products). Soy
sauce (jiangyou or shoyu): Varieties of soy sauce, soy
sauce processing (traditional Chinese household method,
modern Chinese method, processing of Japanese shoyu,
comparison of soy sauce and jiang or miso preparations),
principles of making soy sauce (action of koji enzymes,
fermentation by lactic bacteria and yeasts, color and fl avor
formation, glutaminase and glutamic acid), chemical soy
sauce, progress in soy sauce preparation (use of defatted
soy grits or fl akes, improvements in treating soybeans,
development of an automatic koji-making system,
application of microorganisms with specifi c activities,
techniques to shorten production time, improvements in
soy sauce clarifi cation), chemical composition, quality
attributes and standardization, mycotoxins. Tempeh:
Varieties of tempeh, preparation (traditional method, pilot
plant method, petri dish method), microorganisms involved,
factors affecting tempeh fermentation (starter, dehulling and
aeration, moisture, temperatures, acidity, losses of solids),
changes during fermentation (general changes, protein,
lipid, carbohydrates and other constituents), production
of vitamins, storage, nutritional value. Natto: Preparation,
microorganisms involved, factors affecting natto quality
(raw material, soybean cooking conditions, storage), changes
during fermentation, trends in research on natto and B. natto
(development of novel strains of B. subtilis, purifi cation and
characterization of key enzymes, studies into genes encoding
key enzymes of B. subtilis, studies of possible physiological
roles of natto). Fermented black soybeans (douchi or
hamanatto). Sufu: Preparation, types of sufu, microorganisms
involved, effect of mold growth, effect of brine aging.
Figures show: (1) Photo of Chinese chiang, and
Japanese red and white miso, each on one of three spoons in
a shallow white bowl. (2) Flow chart of a Chinese method
for making koji starter from whole soybeans and wheat