Natto! I love it and I think it is the secret weapon of Japan, like I wrote :-p, but how much I said it is good, good for even the diet. Natto is the champion food which is most hated by foreign people, I know.
By the way, how much I love natto so far, I hardly eat it at shops or restaurants. At therer We can eat Ika Natto, Natto Oroshi Japanese Izakaya (you may find ika natto info too here, very good site) and Natto Spagetti at Pasta place. But I do not remember any other popular dishes now. Unfortunately Natto dosen't have a rich variation for cooking. And we have to care about the smell of it after eating too.
But my one of favorite sites nifty portal Z found this Natto restaurant. Cool! The name of shop is NEBARI YA. This means "thread shop" exactly. You can choose the size of rice and natto portions, and topping. She chose the egg and then after that Takana.Look at price! The egg one is only 290yen.
Natto first timers: this is for you.
1) try natto often until you break the yakky feeling. 120 millions japanese + other natto-lovers all over the world can't be wrong. Natto is a fantastic food, mysterious, delicious AND good for you. So get with on with the natto program and don't stay on a first -time impression.
2) Easiest is to try it on top of rice, wrapped with nori maki-style, and a tear of soy sauce. That should do it.
3) Tip from a Japanese friend: open the small container of natto, empty in a bowl and whip it vigorously for a minute or so with chopstick to develop the threads. It should be a messy/gooey glob not unlike something an insect would produce as a nest. THEN, and only then, add the small packet of mustard, shiso, etc. Whip more to mix.
3) I shouldn't reveal this so publicly, but what the heck: this is for both natto-lovers and first timers: Cream-cheese is an amazing ingredient to pair with natto. I don't know if this is my own invention, but I haven't found anything on the net. So please give me credit when you make it. I know this will sound anathema to natto-fundamentalists, but trust me and try it.
Recipes:
4)Soba/natto/cream-cheese: cook soba. Mix natto as in 2). Mix natto with a generous spoonful of cream cheese, use some dashi to dilute it a bit. Mix with soba (hot or cold). Sprinkle green onions on top. Eat and ascend to paradise.
5). Cut potatoes in flat chunks (ends, sides to have one flat surface and one convex one. Coat with oil and salt, roast in the oven 15 m on one side, 5 minutes other side, they should be nicely browned. Mix natto and cream-cheese as before, spread a nice dollop of natto/kurimu tchiizu on each roasted pieces. Devour.
6) I will try to make a gratin dauphinois with natto and report.
7) I will also try to use soy cream cheese to lighten up fat and calories, but dairy cream cheese does an amazing job to assuage funkyness from natto.
Voila.
Yves
Posted by: yves seban | Wednesday, September 06, 2006 at 02:11 AM
*_* I tried natto again after many many years of the first time I tried it. Now, I am a natto addict. 1 packet a day is not enough!!! HELP ME!
Posted by: Gwen | Thursday, June 30, 2005 at 06:41 AM
I had to disable comments on my blog due to abuse by spammers. I haven't had time to install upgrades that would solve the problem. Sorry. I really should have removed the comment forms, which mislead people into believing the comments are active. But if I had time to fix that, I'd have time to install the upgrades.
Posted by: Charles | Saturday, January 01, 2005 at 01:16 AM
how long after eating?...(o¥aji joke)IME eh? guess I should research. arigato gozaimasu!
Posted by: robert | Friday, December 31, 2004 at 01:39 PM
ポトランドが住んでいないからシカゴを住んでいます。日本語のIMEできますか。本当にやさしいです。
I once knew someone who was rather fond of sausage and mushroom pizza, which raised quite an awesome stench, before, during, and after eating.
Perhaps it is a good thing to have allergies. I often don't find smelly things so smelly as a result...
Charles is a very interesting person. After reading some of his blog, I find he rather reminds me of another person named Charles with whom I work. 残念ですね。
Posted by: Claire (クレア) | Friday, December 31, 2004 at 09:37 AM
charles I meant to ask you. how come one can never leave comments on your blog..and why are there blank spaces obscuring some of the text?? is my browser special needs? otherwise you have a fun blog. just to let you know...;)
Posted by: robert | Friday, December 31, 2004 at 12:16 AM
show off.
Posted by: robert | Friday, December 31, 2004 at 12:00 AM
納豆に乗るイカ刺し。。旨い!
Posted by: Charles | Thursday, December 30, 2004 at 04:11 PM
heh heh heh...yes...kimchee natto...all for me. OISHI! I might save one to send to you in Portland (I'm secretly envious, Portland is a nicer place to live and closer to California...;p) One day you'll have to tell me how you manage to pepper your remarks with the nihongo characters..I am in awe. OH!! another cheese lover??!! YAY!! I think it's a person of rare class who can enjoy a nice stilton..mmm *drool* Your comments hearten me. The durian is a stinky critter, but yeah it has to be broken open to fully appreciate the aroma. Still I have several little brothers and whenever they remove their shoes to come into my house I am reminded that the smells of durian and blue cheeses & natto are merely subjective on such a scale of human suffering. ;)
I'm serious about the characters.. I wish I had as fluid a command of the language..it has been only recently that I can point at my head and say "atama" with some degree of confidence. .__.
Posted by: robert | Thursday, December 30, 2004 at 11:11 AM
Uwajimaya has kimchee flavored natto?! うわ・・・ねたみしていますね!I have not seen that at Mitsuwa. (ポルトランドとシアッツルーと、どちのほうが住んでいますか。)Seattle's Uwajimaya seems much nicer than Portland's と思います.
Shiso natto is the most unique one I have had other than non-frozen natto. The non-frozen natto was very tasty. Natto gyoza would be good with some hot chili oil mixed with shoyu...
Blue cheeses (roquefort, gorgonzola, stilton) are nice too, but I have not had durian. I have smelled it, but it did not smell bad to me. A Malaysian classmate brought it in to class one time, but I did not find it foul-smelling. Perhaps it has to be cut into?
Posted by: Claire (クレア) | Thursday, December 30, 2004 at 09:53 AM
confession time. I LOVE NATTO ♥ ♥ ♥! (¬_¬)... it's true! I dont know if it is some genetic malfunction, but I really like that stinky, slimy stuff. I buy it at Uwajimaya in the frozen section.. I like the one with the mustard..or the kimchee flavored one..mmm! Last summer I got to try Natto Gyoza. WOW! Very Tasty! yeah, it's a bit on the ripe side, but certainly no worse than durian..which I also love..and bleu cheese..uh-oh I see a smelly Oyaji pattern forming here. (°_°)
Posted by: robert | Thursday, December 30, 2004 at 01:17 AM