Showing posts with label fermentation. Show all posts
Monday, 27 January 2025
Discovering the Plant Wisdom and Fermentation Culture of Taiwan’s Indigenous Amis People
Taiwan’s indigenous communities possess a rich knowledge of plants and fermentation that reflects their harmonious coexistence with nature.
On a recent trip, we visited an Amis village, guided by professors and students from Pingtung University of Science, along with a team from Japan’s leading Koji-maker. This journey opened a window into the incredible food culture and plant wisdom of the Amis people, blending ancient traditions with insights from modern science.
A Table Rich with Fermentation
The Amis people’s food culture is a paradise of fermentation. Their dining tables are filled with unique creations like matured pork sushi, pickled fish roe, salted pork offal, and fermented fish eggs. These dishes seamlessly combine the bounty of the sea and the mountains, offering a distinctive culinary experience.
Interestingly, the fermentation of meat and fish was also recorded in Japan’s Engishiki from the Heian period. It described “meat miso” (nikusho) and “fish miso” (gyosho), which have largely disappeared from Japanese cuisine. However, these traditions are still alive in the Amis villages, where wild boar meat is freshly prepared into a fermented paste or cured with salt, creating flavors rooted in sustainability and heritage.
Wild Plants and fermentation
One of the most striking aspects of the Amis culture is their deep understanding of wild plants. According to Wu Xueyue, principal of the Indigenous Vegetable School in Hualien and author of Vegetarian Doctrine, the Amis recognize over 200 types of wild plants, with more than 100 making regular appearances on their tables.
During my visit to the Indigenous Vegetable School, just a short walk from Hualien Station, I was amazed by their thriving garden of wild plants. Visitors can enjoy a guided tour of the garden. This hands-on experience highlighted the sheer diversity of wild plants used in their daily cooking, from herbs with medicinal properties to flavorful greens.
Nourishing Alcohol: Herb-Infused Rice Malt Wine
The Amis also good at creating unique fermented beverages. Their rice malt wine is crafted using 12 different types of plants, each selected for its medicinal benefits, aroma, and preservative properties. Unlike herbal tinctures, where plants are soaked in alcohol, the Amis incorporate these plants directly into the fermentation process, making the plants an integral part of the alcohol itself.
The result is a nourishing, health-boosting wine that combines the benefits of natural fermentation with plant-based medicine. This innovative approach to fermentation reflects the Amis people’s ability to blend practical knowledge with cultural traditions.
Wild Cooking Techniques
The Amis people’s cooking methods are as fascinating as their ingredients. One standout technique involves heating stones until they’re red-hot and then placing them into a bowl of soup made with wild herbs, served in a betel nut leaf bowl. The sizzle of the hot stones creates a fantastic display, releasing aromatic flavors into the soup and adding a wild, earthy touch to the meal.
Their resourcefulness extends to fishing methods as well, using plant-based toxins to stun fish and intricately woven bamboo nets to catch them—a perfect example of sustainable living that respects natural ecosystems.
Bringing Indigenous Knowledge to Japan
Inspired by these experiences, we’re organizing a fermentation camp in Nagano at the end of August. The goal is to recreate Amis-style fermented foods using Japanese wild plants. By understanding why the Amis chose specific plants for fermentation, we hope to adapt these techniques to local ingredients.
In addition, our ethnobotanical food workshops this month will feature recipes inspired by the Amis village. The menu includes:
• Taroko Tribe’s Wild Millet Porridge
• Amis-Style Stir-Fried Matured Pork Sushi
• Stone-Grilled Seafood Hotpot
• Paiwan Tribe’s Pork Millet Dumplings
• Amis Rice Malt Wine (Herb Koji)
• Seaweed Salad with Koregusu and Lime
These dishes will showcase rare fermentation ingredients brought back from Taiwan, along with easy-to-find alternatives for home cooking.
Tuesday, 18 February 2020
Visit small-scale fermented food manufacturers in Mikawa Aichi prefecture
Fermentation in Mikawa, Aichi prefecture
Aichi is now famous for a major producer of cars, Toyota company, and also steels, but actually, it is also cluster area of food producers. Mikawa, Aichi prefecture is one of the best places to produce koji rice mold. There are many breweries of fermented seasonings such as soy sauce, miso, vinegar sake and mirin. Indeed, Mikawa can be said to be a fermentation district.The reasons why there are so many fermented food manufacturers in Mikawa are:
- good climate
- blessed with nature (mountain, water sources and ocean)
- development of shipping industry in Edo period 17th century
- 5th biggest sake production site
Traditionally, sake was transported and sold in Edo (current Tokyo). Sake residues are recycled to make kasu-zuke (sake lee pickle), vinegar, and amazake (milky sweet sake).
It was really suitable for shipping companies to transport food products from Mikawa to Edo and to Osaka, since it is conveniently located in the middle of Japan in-between Edo(east) and Osaka(west), and compared to Osaka port, the tide flow is stable in Mikawa.
 |
| Mizkan vinegar factory along the canal |
Hacho miso
Hatchō Miso has been made in Okazaki area for a long time since 1645. It's made from just soy bean and salt without using rice or wheat mold, which is very unique to Aichi Prefecture.
Steamed soybeans are mixed with bean koji (fermented soy) and formed into miso balls. The miso ball koji are mixed with salted water and put into a big wooden barrel to be fermented for 2 years.
The unique point of Hacho miso is to use around 500 river stones with a weight of 3 tons are put on top in conical shaped mounds, after sealing the miso ball into the wooden barrels.
There are two company in Okazaki to produce Hacho miso until now, and there is factory tours to learn about this unique miso ball fermentation culture in Aichi.
You can taste Hacho miso in the restaurant. The flavor is very thick and dense, and it goes well with tonkatsu miso and also oden.
Mikawa mirin
Mirin (sweet sake) is an essential condiment used in Japanese cuisine. The alcohol content is approximately 14%, it's sweet but no sugar added, and the sweetness comes purely from the process of fermentation (saccharification by koji rice mold). The ingredients are just simply three: mochi rice, koji and shochu (diluted sake).
The history dates back to 600 years ago. Mirin became popular among especially women, since mirin is sweeter and with less alcohol than sake. It's used for teriyaki sauce (sweet sauce for stewed chicken, yakitori), for boiled fish, and sometimes small amount of mirin can be also used instead of sugar.
I have visited Sumiya Bunjo Shoten and Sugiura Mirin. Both are family-run small-scale mirin producers, which produce
Sumiya Bunjo Shoten
The history dates back to 600 years ago. Mirin became popular among especially women, since mirin is sweeter and with less alcohol than sake. It's used for teriyaki sauce (sweet sauce for stewed chicken, yakitori), for boiled fish, and sometimes small amount of mirin can be also used instead of sugar.
I have visited Sumiya Bunjo Shoten and Sugiura Mirin. Both are family-run small-scale mirin producers, which produce
Sumiya Bunjo Shoten
Sugiura Mirin
vinegar
Japanese vinegar, called "su" is made from rice. Can you imagine how rice will be vinegar? In Mikawa, there is a great vinegar museum, where you can learn the activities of microbes, which convert sugar into alcohol, and alcohol into vinegar.Mitsukan, a large scale vinegar manufacturer was once a sake brewery.
Miyamoto koji mold producer
Koji (fermentation starters, comprising aspergillus or other microorganisms cultured on the surface of soybeans, rice, or barley grains) plays an essential role in the fermentation process.
Miyamoto koji ten produces multiple types of koji all year around (rice koji, mugi wheat koji, bean koji). It also produces miso during winter season from December to March.
Fermentation learning
Aichi is the perfect place to learn about fermentation culture and Japanese seasonings. There are many family-run traditional producers of miso, tamari shoyu, mirin, sake and vinegar, which keep their traditional way of brewing.Please visit Aichi and learn Japanese knowledge of fermentation.
Tuesday, 24 December 2019
Walking the Sreets of Fushimi Sake Town
by Yuka Tsukahara
When you hear the name Fushimi town in Kyoto, what comes to mind? To mention a few, it is a town well known for the thousands of vermillion “Torii” of Fushimi Inari Shrine, a destination for Japanese saké connoisseurs and lovers, and noted for its street names taken after famous warlords in Japanese history. For centuries, locals and visitors alike would gather during the New Year holidays at Fushimi Inari Shrine to pray for peace and prosperity.
Mornings begin early in Fushimi. Even before sunrise, white smoke can be seen rising from saké breweries. That's when we know that saké production is in progress and as the aroma fills the air. For the residents of Fushimi , "Saké" is a part of life as well as livelihood. Many of the parents whom we befriended during our children's kindergarten and primary school years worked for saké companies. Every early winter these parents would share “Saké Kasu” 酒粕 (lees from saké production) made by the different nearby breweries. At a glance, “Saké Kasu” may look similar. The truth is each has its own unique flavor crafted by the brewery that produces it.
Generally speaking, it takes a few years of tasting experience before one can tell by which brewery a saké kasu is made. Additionally, we have been very fortunate over the years to receive the gift of fresh chestnuts in the fall from "Toji 杜氏" brew master in Tamba area (丹波、Hyogo Prefecture). "Saké Kasu" is a so -called the “left over”, but it is nutritious and and delicious and is indispensable part of our cooking and making desserts such as “Saké Kasu” jelly. Children in the neighborhood would play in the streets of saké warehouses. Such streets were their playground for hopscotch and rubber band jump rope after school. Today, this is no longer possible because there are more cars on the streets.
Geographically, the city of Kyoto is surrounded by mountains which makes it possible to collect water from the mountains. Fushimi is located in the sourthern part of the city and enjoys abundant underground water. In fact the original name "Fushimi (伏水)" is derived from Chinese characters meaning running underground water. Given the resource, it was inevitable for the locals to become producers of Japanese saké.
The production of saké began in the 8th century, but the long history did not always guarantee the stability of the town and business. Fushimi experienced turbulent times and by mid 19th century, Fushimi had only two saké brewery houses. Today we have 24 brewers including both small and large scale brewers registered to Fushimi Saké Brewers Association. Coupled with the growth of popularity of Japanese cuisine, large scale brewery houses such as Gekkeikan and Kizakura have gained popularity around the globe and have adopted modern technology to produce saké.
On the other hand, Fushimi is a home to much smaller scale saké house such as Fujioka Shuzo. Its owner not only produces saké by using saké rice(less sticky, less protein and fat, more water absorbency than table rice) but ventures to use table rice for producing his original saké. He grows his own table rice in his own rice field in Ohara, located in the northern part of the city known for producing local vegetables.
In Fushimi, we live in the mixture of touristy and local life. There are shops focusing on tourists but there are many family owned shops specializing in all kinds of things where the locals frequent. To name a few, we have shops for fish, eel, pickled vegetable, lantern, traditional betrothal gift, tatami mat, traditional sweets and tea.
In Fushimi, we live in the mixture of touristy and local life. There are shops focusing on tourists but there are many family owned shops specializing in all kinds of things where the locals frequent. To name a few, we have shops for fish, eel, pickled vegetable, lantern, traditional betrothal gift, tatami mat, traditional sweets and tea.
During cherry blossom season in the spring, nearby bamboo shoot farmers would bring their freshly harvested bamboo shoots and boil the shoots in a giant pot on the street to sell. We also have one of the largest Kyoto CO-OP store, which provides fresh seafood, meats and produce from the local farmers.
What makes this town vibrant and authentic is the energy of the women working in these shops. The proprietresses of these family-owned shops are candid and have no trouble laughing out loud. They would engage in a small chat whenever they see each other on the street and exchange thoughts.
The proprietors also form strong bonds and annual autumn festival of the local shrine is the occasion when they will prove their leadership. It is also a happy occasion for children to carry flower decorated umbrella and dance in the street in groups.
Fushimi is a free spirited but well balanced town and I hope you will visit us!
Thursday, 12 December 2019
Fermentation experience at a farmer's kitchen and soy sauce brewery in the Yamanobe ancient trail
BY Robin Hoshino
Nature’s Way - When it comes to food
Convenience is often king, but in the land of an legendary queen in Nara, two amazing women are going back to basics.
The Yamanobe Trail which runs through the countryside of Nara, is thought to be one of the oldest roads in Japan. Part of this road winds its way through the eastern edge of the Nara Basin, an area dotted with kofun - ancient burial places of Japanese royalty. Among these is said to be the final resting place of Queen Himiko, who ruled these lands more than a thousand years ago.
Soy sauce brewery Daimon Shoyu
Today, this region is home to a new generation of strong and inspiring women who are making waves in the local food scene for their incredible work. The first of these is Maki, a third generation brewer of Daimon Soy Sauce. We visited her family brewery one clear Autumn morning to find out more about what makes Daimon Soy Sauce unique.
Daimon Soy Sauce Brewery has been passed down through the women in Maki’s family, along with a passion for natural brewing methods. While much modern soy sauce is made in sterile factories, and has many additives to keep the flavor stable for a long period at room temperature, Daimon Soy Sauce is made using traditional techniques in enormous wooden barrels using koji bacteria that is cultivated in-house. As a daughter and mother, Maki is proud to use high quality ingredients and traditional techniques to produce a safe and healthy products for her family and people everywhere.
As soon as we entered the brewery we were hit by an earthy salt caramel-like smell. The entire space was a soy sauce ecosystem - life was in the air.
As we arrived she was busy preparing lunch in the open-air kitchen that overlooks her rice fields and a lake, right at the foot of one of the ancient burial mounds. Back in the kitchen all eyes quickly travelled to the Kamado - a traditional wood fired oven- in the middle of the floor. This is a clay mound-like oven with hollows on the surface for pots to sit into over the flames.
Daimon Soy Sauce Brewery has been passed down through the women in Maki’s family, along with a passion for natural brewing methods. While much modern soy sauce is made in sterile factories, and has many additives to keep the flavor stable for a long period at room temperature, Daimon Soy Sauce is made using traditional techniques in enormous wooden barrels using koji bacteria that is cultivated in-house. As a daughter and mother, Maki is proud to use high quality ingredients and traditional techniques to produce a safe and healthy products for her family and people everywhere.
As soon as we entered the brewery we were hit by an earthy salt caramel-like smell. The entire space was a soy sauce ecosystem - life was in the air.
Maki explained that they are very careful that the brewery does not get infected by other bacteria - the soy sauce bacteria are surprisingly delicate, and succumb easily to more aggressive strains such as those to make natto - fermented soy beans. Using the same barrels year on year gives the soy sauce bacteria a stable environment to thrive. This comes with real challenges - as well as taking a lot of time and labor, as this kind of traditional brewing becomes rarer and rarer, the craftspeople that support this industry are also vanishing - there is only one person in Japan currently making the kind of barrel necessary to brew soy sauce. For this reason too Maki is keen to get more people using this traditionally-made products.
We saw the soy sauce being brewed, and even got a chance to mix the moromi - the fermented mash in the casks, after which Maki invited us to taste the final product. She poured a drop into a sake cup. The colour was deep red, and the aroma fruity and earthy. The taste was deep and complex and satisfying.
Organic Farmer's Kitchen "Himiko's Garden"
After Daimon Soy Sauce, we took a short trip to Himiko’s Garden, a community kitchen and cafe, where we met Kaori - an organic farmer who grows ancient varieties of rice using natural farming methods.
While we waited for the rice to cook, Kaori explained each of her homemade condiments to us. There were several kinds of miso with different bases such as barley and black beans instead of rice and soy beans. We sampled salt-koji and she explained that the koji boosts the salt flavor so you don’t need as much salt if you use salt-koji instead.
Originally from Osaka, Kaori was inspired to move to Nara and study natural farming under an expert as she was concerned about the amount of additives and sugar in modern food. When she started growing her own fields of rice, she out-produced all her neighbours and even her teacher came to find out how she did it. After the tasting Kaori also took us down to the fields to look at the rice. In spite of the recent storms, the plants were looking healthy. She showed us the ancient black and red varieties as well as rice famous in sake-making.
When the rice was ready we sat down to a delicious macrobiotic lunch of vegetables, tofu, chicken, rice and miso soup. The food certainly packed a more nutritious punch that your average meal. After lunch we were brimming with energy.
Soy sauce and rice are perhaps two of the most basic components of Japanese food, and these days are often taken for granted - mass produced and sometimes even imported. Here in Nara, we could experience the quiet dignity that comes with valuing and protecting these essential parts of Japanese culture so that they can be passed on to the next generation.
Originally from Osaka, Kaori was inspired to move to Nara and study natural farming under an expert as she was concerned about the amount of additives and sugar in modern food. When she started growing her own fields of rice, she out-produced all her neighbours and even her teacher came to find out how she did it. After the tasting Kaori also took us down to the fields to look at the rice. In spite of the recent storms, the plants were looking healthy. She showed us the ancient black and red varieties as well as rice famous in sake-making.
When the rice was ready we sat down to a delicious macrobiotic lunch of vegetables, tofu, chicken, rice and miso soup. The food certainly packed a more nutritious punch that your average meal. After lunch we were brimming with energy.
Saturday, 26 January 2019
[24-26 Sep 2019] 3 Day Fermentation workshop to learn how to make authentic koji (rice malt) from a professional koji starter manufacturer
This class offers a rare opportunity to learn making authentic koji malts by a president of Hishiroku Moyashi. “Hishiroku Moyashi”, the only one koji starter manufacturer established at least 360 years ago in Kyoto, where koji culture was started in the end of Heian period (12th century).
The venue “Moyashi machiya” was once used as a koji starter manufacturer, and the actual koji starter cultivation room, called “koji-muro” is used for making koji for this workshop.
The venue “Moyashi machiya” was once used as a koji starter manufacturer, and the actual koji starter cultivation room, called “koji-muro” is used for making koji for this workshop.
What you can learn from this class
You can learn basic knowledge of koji malt (aspergillus oryzae) and fermentation by microorganisms as well as how to make koji rice malts from a professional koji starter manufacturer.Venue:
Kyoto Moyashi Machiya (268 Nishiwakamatsu-cho Shimogyo, Kyoto city)Lecture:
- Learn how to make koji at home by steaming 2kg of rice
- Experience professional koji manufacturing process of “mori” (transfer of koji into wooden trays) by using rice malts fermented by Hishiroku Moyashi.
Schedule:
Day1 24th September 10:00-17:00Process of “Drainage (mizukiri)”, “Steaming (mushi)”, “Cooling (horei)”, “Inoculation (tanekiri)” and “Wrapping (toko)”
Lecture 1: History of fermented foods in Japan, Classification of microorganisms, Aspergillus oryzae
Day2 25th September 10:00-17:00
Process of “Cut and turn (kirikaeshi)”, “Serve (mori)”, “Mid-duty (naka-shigoto)”, “Piling (bozumi)”, “Final-duty (shimai)”, “bricks-laying (renga-zumi)”
Lecture2 : Koji malt starter (tane-koji)
Lecture3: Enzyme, tasting fermented soymilk by using rice malt powder
Day3 26th September 10:00-13:00
Process of finalizing (dekoji)
Lecture on the koji starter produced by Hishiroku, Q&A
* Special gathering will be held at night on 24th September. Please feel free to join (extra charge needed).
For further information:
Moyashi machiya FB
https://www.facebook.com/moyashihouse
Sunday, 13 January 2019
How to make shoyu (soy sauce) at home
Soy sauce, called shoyu is one of the 5 key seasonings of washoku cuisine, along with sugar, salt, vinegar, and miso.
Please see the link below more about the production of soy sauce in Japan.
"Hishio no sato" a home of soy sauce, Shodo shima island
water : soy bean = 1.1 : 1
salt 18% of total amount
To make sweeter shoyu (called usukuchi), increase the ratio of wheat more than soy, then, the taste and the color will be lighter. If you reduce wheat, the taste will be thicker and color will be darker (called koikuchi).
2. boil or steam halfway till the beans get soften
3. roast wheats
4. mill wheat after roasted
5. mix crushed wheat with tane koji (starter) and boiled soy beans
6. put in muro (temperature controlled room) for 3 days with the room temperature 36-38 Celsius degree.
After filtered soy sauce, the leftover also can be used for making "jiang" mixed with chili powder and rice koji.
Please see the link below more about the production of soy sauce in Japan.
"Hishio no sato" a home of soy sauce, Shodo shima island
How to make soy sauce
They key to make shoyu (soy sauce) successfully is depending on koji malt (fermented soy beans and wheats).Ingredients
wheat : soy bean = 1:1water : soy bean = 1.1 : 1
salt 18% of total amount
To make sweeter shoyu (called usukuchi), increase the ratio of wheat more than soy, then, the taste and the color will be lighter. If you reduce wheat, the taste will be thicker and color will be darker (called koikuchi).
1. soak soy beans for one night
2. boil or steam halfway till the beans get soften
3. roast wheats
4. mill wheat after roasted
5. mix crushed wheat with tane koji (starter) and boiled soy beans
6. put in muro (temperature controlled room) for 3 days with the room temperature 36-38 Celsius degree.
after 3 days...
7. mix with salted water and leave it for one year. It needs to stir everyday for the first 1 week, and once a week in winter season, and everyday in summer time.
If you use soy sauce instead of water, it becomes saishikomi shoyu (second brewed shoyu).
8. filter by linen or cotton
After filtered soy sauce, the leftover also can be used for making "jiang" mixed with chili powder and rice koji.
Subscribe to:
Posts
(
Atom
)
