Natto is a dietary supplement, not a medicine, and can be eaten once or twice a day, with 50g at a time.

Traditionally, natto is mixed with soy sauce or Japanese mustard (the boxed natto sold at department stores usually uses light Japanese soy sauce and yellow mustard), stirred until a silky texture appears, and then placed on top of white rice to be eaten, which is called natto rice.

Some people mix natto with a variety of ingredients such as raw eggs, green onions, minestrone, daikon radish, and shibori. In Hokkaido and Tohoku, natto is sometimes mixed with sugar. There is also a creative way to eat it with mayonnaise. If you add the sauce without mixing it, it will become too watery and lose its consistency, while green onions and wasabi suppress the pungent odor of "natto ammonia". Those who are not accustomed to eating natto think it is rotten boiled soybeans.

Effects and functions of natto

Natto has a viscous, smelly, slightly sweet taste, not only retains the nutritional value of soybeans, rich in vitamin K2, to improve the digestive rate of protein absorption, but also more importantly, the fermentation process produces a variety of physiologically active substances, which have the ability to dissolve the body's fibrous proteins and other regulating physiological functions. The health care effect.

Natto contains all the nutrients of soybean and the special nutrients increased after fermentation, containing saponin, isoflavones, unsaturated fatty acids, lecithin, folic acid, edible fiber, calcium, iron, potassium, vitamins and a variety of amino acids, minerals, suitable for long-term consumption and maintenance of health.

Soybeans and black beans are different in nutrient composition, so they are utilized differently by natto bacteria. Natto produced from soybeans, the grains are golden, intact, softer, produce more mucus, high amino acid content, while the bitter taste, strong odor, which is related to the high amino acid content, and the number of live bacteria is far more than the black beans. Black soybean production of natto is black, with a metallic luster, complete and hard grains, less mucus, amino acid content is low, containing less live bacteria.

When the ratio of soybeans to black beans is 8:2, the amino acid content and bacterial count of natto produced by ***same fermentation are between the raw materials of all soybeans and all black beans. From the point of view of the mixed fermented beans, it is easy to distinguish that the soybean grains are golden, with metallic luster, more mucus content on the surface, and the grains are complete and softer, while the black bean grains have luster, less mucus covering the surface, and the grains are complete and harder. Soybeans are easily utilized by natto bacteria, and the natto produced is better than black beans.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia - Natto (Health Food)