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Fermented Soybeans

Appears in
Umami: Unlocking the Secrets of the Fifth Taste
Umami

By Ole Mouritsen and Klavs Styrbæk

Published 2014

  • About

Products made from fermented soybeans, in the form of liquids and pastes, are among the most widely used and oldest taste enhancers in the world and, in the form of protein-rich solids, they are ingredients in their own right in many prepared dishes. In addition to soy sauce, these products include miso, fermented tofu, and nattō, to name just a few.

Soybeans are probably native to Siberia or the northeastern part of China. Very early on in human history, the wild strains were domesticated and cultivation spread throughout East Asia. The oldest preserved samples of cultivars that resemble modern soybeans were found in Korea and date from about 1000 BCE.

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