We go looking for the best natto (fermented soybeans) in all of Japan【Taste test】

Our search in natto mecca Mito leads us to Kogoira Natto.

Just about every part of Japan has a food it’s famous for, and in Mito, the capital city of Ibaraki Prefecture, that food is natto, a.k.a. fermented soybeans, a.k.a. Japan’s smelliest food. But if Mito is the best place for natto, then by extension the best natto in Mito should be the very best in all of Japan, right?

That was the logic our Japanese-language reporter Ikuna Kamezawa was following when she asked her friend, a Mito resident, to recommend the best natto you can buy in the city.

Ikuna popped this question while she and her friend were at a Mito supermarket, standing in front of the giant natto shelf. Even with that wide selection, though, Ikuna’s friend said the best natto wasn’t here, so the two of them headed to the Mito branch of the Keisei Department Store…

…and over to the kensanhin (県産品), or Ibaraki-produced items, area on the store’s food floor, where Ikuna’s friend pointed her to the Kogoira Natto from maker Marushin Shokuhin.

This, her friend said, is the best of the best…but Ikuna had never heard the word “kogoira” before. It turns out that it’s a variant of soboro natto, which is itself a variant of regular natto. In soboro natto, the fermented soybeans are mixed with minced daikon radish, and if you throw in the radish’s leaves too, then it becomes Kogoira Natto.

▼ Kogoira Natto

▼ Regular natto (left) and Kogoira Natto

Despite Ikuna’s friend’s glowing endorsement, Kogoira Natto is priced at just 324 yen (US$2.30), and Ikuna decided to pick up three different types of it.

▼ Clockwise from top left: Kimchi Kogoira Natto, Plum Sea Grass Kogoira Natto, and regular Kogoira Natto

▼ The different flavors come from included sauces that you stir into the fermented soybeans right before eating.

Natto is sold refrigerated, so Ikuna asked for plenty of ice packs for her trip back to Tokyo to share her natto bounty with the rest of the SoraNews24 HQ staff.

She decided to start the sampling by giving fellow writer P.K. Sanjun a taste. However, P.K., who has a deep hatred of natto thanks in no small part to its extremely pungent, sock-like odor, turned her away immediately.

▼ Yes, even among people born and raised in Japan, natto’s smell can be a deal breaker.

Next, she approached Japanese editor Go Hatori, who has no olfactory hangups when it comes to natto.

So what did Go, who’s a natto fan in general, think?

“Hey, this is good stuff! It’s…interesting. Oh, is this daikon radish? That’s unique! Even more than a deliciously interesting natto, I’d call this an interestingly delicious natto!”

Also down for a taste was Jun, another member of our Japanese-language writing staff and a natto lover, who said of the Kogoira Natto “This is the best-tasting natto I’ve ever eaten.”

So while people who can’t handle the smell of natto probably won’t be able to come near enough to Kogoira Natto to taste it for themselves, if you’re someone who doesn’t mind natto’s aroma, you’ll probably love the taste of this natto, and if you can’t make the trip to Mito, it’s available online from Marushin Shokuhin here.

Related: Keisei Department Store (Mito branch)
Photos ©SoraNews24
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