Natto might be unknown for a lot of people. Its place of origin is Japan and it is still mainly used as part of the Japanese cuisine. Natto has been used and been around since the ancient times. Its use eventually spread to China as well where it became an important part of the cuisine. Nowadays, it is available all around the world although it is not widely used among other cuisines.
Natto has outstanding nutritional value which is the main reason that people consume it. For example, almost 30% of people from Japan admitted that they do not like the taste of natto but they eat it because of the nutritional benefits it offers. Natto is mainly used as part of breakfast dishes in the Japanese culture which helps people to start the day full of vitamins and nutrients. So, for a lot of people, the answer to the question, what does natto taste like, does not really matter.
All You Need to Know about Natto
Natto Health Benefits
Before we proceed at explaining natto health benefits, let’s look at how natto is prepared. The main ingredient of natto is soybeans which have to be fermented in order to turn into natto. Most of the time it is eaten with rice but it can also be added to other dishes as well.
Even though natto has a strong smell, a lot of people eat it due to its high nutritional value. Due to the fermentation procedure that the soybeans go through, natto is beneficial by providing probiotics to our body. Probiotics are a huge help for our digestive system since they make digestion easier and healthier.
Among natto health benefits, you can also find vitamin K which contributes to an enhanced strength of our bones. Vitamin K helps us to produce nutrients inside our body that help building and maintaining the strength of our bones. Natto also helps to maintain a healthy cardiovascular system by providing fibers and probiotics. These maintain our cholesterol at low levels which makes our heart healthy.
The nutrients that you can find in natto can help you keep a strong immune system by diminishing the number of harmful bacteria living inside us. So, a lot of people as: what does natto taste like? But in some cases, even if someone does not like the taste of natto, they eat it either way due to these huge health benefits.
How to eat natto?
Maybe natto is unknown to you and now you have gotten a chance to try it. You have no idea how to eat natto? Well, you should know that there are different kinds of natto that you can eat. These can be distinguished based on the size of the soybeans. So, you can buy large, medium or small natto. For beginners, it might be better to buy the small size so that you try whether you like it or not.
If you buy natto in packages, you might notice that it comes with sauces. So, when you open the package, you have to mix the soybeans with the sauces. You will notice that it will gain a sticky texture but you should not worry. Natto is supposed to look like that. Actually, in many cases, the look of natto deters people from actually trying it.
After you have mixed natto with all the sauces, you can start eating it. You can eat it raw or you can also add rice to it. There are different toppings that you can add to natto if you cannot bear its sight or taste. Such toppings are eggs, onions, pasta or tuna. However, no toppings can be excluded. Natto can be delicious with whatever topping or side dish you choose to eat it with.
What does natto smell like?
Although natto is not a part of every cuisine all around the world, people are curious to know about it. Most people have heard about the huge benefits it offers for our body so they also wish to try it. As a first step, you see natto which gives you an impression of beans only. After this step, everyone asks: what does natto smell like?
First of all, the sight of natto is very sticky which might not be appealing to you. Then, the smell of natto hits you sharply and it is very strong. Some people claim that the smell of natto is similar to that of an old cheese. Because of these two characteristics, most people recommend to add side dishes or various toppings for natto so that you will not feel the strong smell and sticky sight.
What does natto taste like?
A lot of people do not make it to the step where they can actually taste natto. Due to its very unappealing sight and smell, most people just leave it there and will not even try it. However, there might be some people who are courageous enough to go ahead and try it. So, they always ask beforehand: what does natto taste like?
Majority of natto eaters have claimed that the taste is similar to a cheese that is very salty. However, this can change based on the side dish or the toppings you add to it. The most favorite way to eat natto has been reported to be the mix of natto with rice. The taste of this is delicious and this is the most preferred method even for those who are not huge fans of natto.
Conclusion
If someone mentions natto, you might be surprised since you do not know what that really is. Well, you should not feel bad. Although natto has been around since ancient times, it has remained mainly as a main dish of the Japanese cuisine. Natto is mostly eaten as a breakfast dish but you may also eat it throughout the day at different times. For example, schools in Japan also serve natto as a snack throughout the day.
The most interesting thing about natto is that it has an unappealing smell and sight which makes people want to stay away from it. Its sticky texture and strong smell might deter people from tasting it. So, if you are courageous enough, you might ask: what does natto taste like? Although some say that its taste is similar to cheese, you might get different tastes since you can mix it with other side dishes or toppings. You should definitely try it, especially due to its high nutritional value.
