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Natto

Prep Time:

N/A

Cook Time:

Natto linguine

Serves:

Level:

Advanced

About the Recipe

Okay, so not everyone likes natto and you can find people who'll tell you it's the worst thing they've ever eaten. Natto has what I call a "grown up" taste - it's like a strong camembert of gorgonzola or perhaps a gamey pheasant. And, you can't ognore the fact that it is very, very good for you and a very effective form of non-animal protein. So, that my free ad for natto - if you're still reading, you probably already like natto so here's a way you can make it yourself! There are only two ingredients - soya beans and natto yeast - and if all else fails, you can buy both your soya beans and natto yeast online. There are several methods used to ferment natto beans at home - I use the oven method (but you need a very low oven setting below 40 C / 100 F) and it has never failed to produce great results.

Ingredients

450 g soy beans


0.1 - 0.2g natto yeast*


* the amount of natto yeast you need is tiny - it won’t hurt if you put a little more in though

Preparation

wash & rinse the soya beans 3 times under running water


next, soak the beans in a bowl under cover for 24 hours


drain the beans and steam for 40 - 45 minutes  in a covered pan (but preferably in a pressure cooker)


meanwhile, use boiling water to sterilise a pyrex dish (or other container) a large spoon and a small glass


let the beans rest 15 - 20 minutes after steaming


take 25 ml of the steaming water and put it into the sterilised cup. add 0.1 - 0.2g of natto yeast to the water and mix


spoon the soya beans into the sterilised pyrex dish. then, 

pour the natto yeast solution over the beans and stir gently with the sterilised sppon


cover the pyrex with clingfilm and pierce 10-12 times with a knife. then,  push the clingfilm down to cover the beans


next, cover with another layer of clingfilm and pierce but this time leave the clingfilm covering the top of the pyrex


put the pyrex into an oven* and ferment the beans at 38-40C for 24 hrs


remove the dish from the oven. you can eat some your natto straight away if you wish but the beans will gain more flavour if left for a day or two in the fridge. your natto supply will last 7 - 10 days refridgerated.


*i use the oven method for fermenting but you can try other methods such as a slow cooker - the key is to keep the beans at a constant temperature to allow fermentation to take place

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