Ahead of my India trip last month, I was invited by JETRO (the Japan External Trade Organisation) to attend an event dedicated to Japanese Fermented Foods at the Fisheries, in Hackney.
Industry professionals - chefs, food writers, hoteliers and other culinary experts - gathered for a morning of talks, networking and tastings exploring the subject of Japanese fermented foods.
Chef, author and content creator Kenji Morimoto led a talk all about the foundations of Japanese fermentation - touching upon the health benefits and process, as well as practical methods and applications. I was so inspired by his talk that I not only immediately bought a copy of Ferment, but it spur me on to make use of the koji my mother brought back from Japan, and I am now in the process of making my own miso.
Fellow Guild of Food Writers member Akemi Yokoyama gave an overview of the essentials of Japanese cuisine - how to use various fermented seasonings and ingredients such as akazu (an umami rich vinegar), natto (fermented soybeans) and umeboshi (picked ume plums).
While the various health benefits were spoken of at length, the real excitement came from the delicious menu we were served - ehime citrus and bitter leaf salad with burrata and ponzu; butterbean miso hummus with charred tamari oyster mushroom; sourdough with whipped miso butter and a miso sticky toffee pudding crepe cake.
For businesses who are interested in incorporating ingredients of this kind, JETRO has launched an online catalogue called ‘Japan Street’, an online portal where businesses can contact suppliers directly for this purpose. You can find out more about it here.
