Shio-koji craze in Japan

Posted on May 31, 2012 in Hiroko's Blog

Koji mixed with water and salt is called Shio-koji. Shio-koji has been used as a pickling base for about 350 years in Japan. Suddenly this Shio-koji was named “Miracle Seasoning” and used by every cooks from professional to avocational kitchens across Japan. I was introduced to Shio-Koji seasoning by Chef Jiro at Aburiya Kinnosuke, NY City. Since then, I made my own batch and am digging it deeper. The other day I have marinated chicken breast (no skin) for 2 hours or so and cooked it in the skillet. The resulting chicken was juicy, moist (it is like cooking over Bincho-tan) with slight sweetness from koji. Shio-koji contains enzymes – protease, lipase and amylase. So it is the perfect tenderizer. I have also tried the shio-koji for duck breast. I was going to make a kind of ham….I need more experiments. I will blog how to make Shio-koji shortly. As home made amazake has the real flavor and health benefits compared to the commercially produces, does Shio-koji.