Koji is a type of friendly mold often used to ferment rice, which is then used to make sake, mirin, miso, and other things. It’s really kind of a magical substance that is very important in Japanese cooking and is one of the reasons that Japanese food has such great, deep flavors that are very different from the flavors of Western cooking. Shio koji is koji rice treated with salt. Shoyu is Japanese soy sauce, so shoyu koji is koji rice treated with soy sauce. Shio koji and shoyu koji are GREAT marinades and flavor enhancers and are loaded with umami. Both can also be used as a salt substitute. When diluted with water, amazake is a naturally sweet (no sugar added) drink made by fermenting cooked rice and koji. It can be served hot or cold, thick or thin. Undiluted, this amazake has the marinating power and umami of shio koji or shoyu koji without the salt. It can also be used as a sugar substitute. Because shio koji and shoyu koji can be used as salt substitutes, and amazake can be used as a sugar substitute, be careful not to use too much of any of them as a marinade, to avoid making the finished dish too salty or too sweat. As a rule of thumb, use about 10% by weight of the protein being marinated. -- John Hornick



Preparation time: about 20 minutes, plus 2-3 weeks fermentation time


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Ingredients:

NOTE: One 20 oz. (1 lb. 4 oz., by weight) container of Cold Mountain Firm Granular Rice Koji makes one batch of shio koji, shoyu Koji, and amazake.



Shio Koji:
8 oz. by weight (~ 1cup) rice koji
2 oz. by weight (~1/4 cup) Kosher salt
About 1 -1.5 cups warm filtered water

Shoyu Koji:
8 oz. by weight (~ 1cup) (200 grams) rice koji
1 1/3 cups warm shoyu

Amazake:
3 oz. by weight sushi rice
4 oz. by weight koji
6.5 fluid oz. water


Sources:
Koji:
Cold Mountain Koji ([ Ссылка ])
Umami Insider Koji ([ Ссылка ])



Sous vide equipment:
Sansaire immersion circulator ([ Ссылка ])
SousVide Supreme water oven ([ Ссылка ])

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