Ethnic fermented foods and alcoholic beverages of Japan

Japanese traditional fermented foods are centerpieces of taste of Washoku cuisine which was added to UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2013. Miso is fermented soybean paste. It is used for every day’s miso soup and as a seasoning in many kinds of cooking. Shoyu - soy sauce - is a liquid-type seasoning made of soybeans, wheat, koji, and salt water. Natto is soybeans fermented with Bacillus, with sticky but tasty γ-polyglutamic acid. Su is a traditional vinegar of cereal or fruit. Rice vinegar which is usually made directly from rice and rice koji is the most popular in Japan. Tsukemono is pickled vegetables, of which the traditional one is fermented with lactic acid bacteria. Tsukemono is usually served daily as a side dish with boiled rice. A variety of fermented seafoods, salted type (gyoshyo, shiokara, kusaya), pickled type (nare-zushi, nuka-zuke), and molded type (fushi) are also developed. The last one “fushi” is an indispensable ingredient in Japanese cuisine. Two kinds of alcoholic beverages, famous sake (rice wine) and shochu (spirits), are also important gifts of fermentation. The outline, including information of microbes, preparation methods and functionality and health benefits, of these traditional fermented foods and beverages popular in Japan are introduced.