Clearing the Path For the Stinky, Sticky, Beloved Superfood of Japan: NYrture Natto | food. curated.
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Not Synced♪ (gentle music) ♪
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Not Synced["All good food has a story."]
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Not Synced(Ann Yonetani) It's true that natto
has this very unique gooey, sticky texture -
Not Syncedbut to me that's fun!
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Not SyncedYou know, it's interesting.
(laughter) -
Not SyncedIt's something to talk about.
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Not SyncedNatto truly is the Japanese cheese.
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Not SyncedIt's a vegan version or a really complex,
umami-rich, like washed rind cheese. -
Not SyncedAnd yeah, many cheese lovers
really enjoy natto -
Not Syncedand see that parallel in flavor profile.
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Not SyncedIt's a food that I feel
like more people needs to have access to -
Not Syncedbecause I think that
can benefit a lot of people -
Not Syncedby incorporating it into their diets.
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Not SyncedHi, my name is Ann Yonetani,
I'm the founder and owner of NYrture Food -
Not Syncedwhich makes natto in Brooklyn, New York.
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Not SyncedNatto is really a ubiquitous food,
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Not Syncedan everyday food that's most commonly
eaten for breakfast. -
Not SyncedYes, I feel like I have sort of taken on
the mission of being a cheerleader, -
Not Synceda spokesperson, an evangelist
for natto in America. -
Not SyncedAnd it really is because I truly believe
that natto is so special, so unique... -
Not SyncedI think if there's any food on earth
that deserves to be called a superfood -
Not Syncedis natto.
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Not Synced♪ (slow piano music) ♪
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Not SyncedIt's good.
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Not SyncedIn a weird way, I'm an urban farmer,
an urban micro farmer. -
Not SyncedI grow bacteria,
and those bacteria eat soybeans, -
Not Syncedand they help me produce natto.
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Not SyncedYeah, I'm a nerd.
(laughter) -
Not SyncedSo, this is day one of
Nyrture's natto-making-process. -
Not SyncedEvery batch starts with this step,
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Not Syncedwhich is me hand-sorting
through the beans. -
Not SyncedI kind of love this step--
I love this step and I hate this step -
Not Syncedbut there's something very meditative
about the process -
Not Syncedand our beans are beautiful,
I mean, they're so clean, -
Not Syncedyou know, 99.9% of them look fantastic.
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Not SyncedI'd like to think that
every single natto bean we sell -
Not Syncedhas passed underneath my eyes.
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Not SyncedI'm a microbiologist,
that's how I got into this business, -
Not Syncedjust by being fascinated by
the power of the microbial world. -
Not SyncedSo, I'm interested in how consuming
some of these good bacterias, -
Not Syncedthese probiotic-types of bacteria
in the form of fermented food -
Not Syncedhas that impact in human health.
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Not SyncedOur first products--
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Not SyncedSo those little white dots
are actually chemically-pure umami taste. -
Not SyncedThere is written documentation
describing natto for over a 1000 years. -
Not SyncedIn the West, and in America,
is virtually unknown. -
Not SyncedIt makes me think that if more adults
will come to natto with just an open mind, -
Not Synceda lot more of them might find
that they actually like it. (chuckles) -
Not SyncedThis might be excessive
but I wash them ten times, -
Not Syncedyou know, soak them, entertain them,
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Not Syncedand dump out the water.
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Not SyncedAnd then, they sit in the water overnight,
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Not Syncedso that the beans are able to hydrate.
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Not SyncedThey will swell to over twice
the weight and volume. -
Not SyncedWhen I first learned how to make natto
-
Not Syncedfrom a fifth-generation-natto-maker
in Tokio-- -
Not Syncedhe told me that the most important step
was to choose the best beans to start with -
Not Syncedand he was right.
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Not SyncedThe best natto soybeans in America
are grown in northern midwest, -
Not Syncedmostly in North Dakota,
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Not Syncedand something that
a lot of people don't realize -
Not Syncedis that most of the natto
that is made in the world, -
Not Syncedi.e. the natto that is made
and sold in Japan, -
Not Syncedit's actually, most of it,
is made from US-grown soy, -
Not Syncedand the bulk for that, also,
from North Dakota, specifically. -
Not SyncedWe also have black soybeans
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Not Syncedand then, we have another brown beans
which are certified organic. -
Not SyncedNatto soybeans are very different
from the typical commodity soybean. -
Not SyncedThat's their non-GMO certified definition.
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Not SyncedBut soybeans that are used to make natto
by any decent natto-maker -
Not Syncedare really beans that have been
carefully selected over generations -
Not Syncedto be ideal for this particular
fermentation process. -
Not SyncedWhat makes Nyrture's natto unique:
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Not SyncedOur natto is fresh,
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Not Syncedit's never been frozen--
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Not Syncedunlike all the natto
that is imported from Japan, -
Not Syncedwhich is frozen before export.
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Not SyncedThat's important,
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Not Syncedone, because freezing and thawing food
can really affect its taste and texture, -
Not Syncedbut two, if people are motivated
to eat natto for its health benefits, -
Not Syncedfreezing and thawing,
also, significantly damage -
Not Syncedthose health benefits, as well.
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Not Synced(Liza) How is it?
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Not SyncedGood, they're nice and soft,
has some sugar to it, it's sweet... -
Not SyncedIt has at least three
completely unique properties -
Not Syncedthat are unlike any other food on earth.
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Not SyncedNumber one, it's probiotic,
it's fermented with Bacillus subtilis, -
Not Syncedwhich is a member
of the healthy gut microbiome, -
Not Syncedso it's a probiotic bacteria
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Not Syncedthat isn't found in any other
fermented food certainly in the West. -
Not SyncedThe second one is that natto
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Not Syncedis the most concentrated food source
of vitamin K2 of any food on earth, -
Not Syncedand it beats any other
by an order of magnitude. -
Not SyncedVitamin K2 is essential for bone health
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Not Syncedbut it's also very important
for cardiovascular health. -
Not SyncedIt doesn't matter
how much calcium you eat, -
Not Syncedif you don't have enough vitamin K2
to help recruit it out of your bloodstream -
Not Syncedand bring it to to your bones,
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Not Syncedit accumulates and causes
arterial calcification, -
Not Syncedand leads to heart disease.
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Not SyncedThe third reason is that
there's an enzyme named after natto, -
Not Syncedcalled nattokinase,
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Not Syncedand this enzyme is
a natural blood thinner. -
Not SyncedIt has an enzymatic activity which,
actually, has been shown -
Not Syncedto be able of breaking down blood clots,
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Not Syncedand the only natural source of it
is natto.
- Title:
- Clearing the Path For the Stinky, Sticky, Beloved Superfood of Japan: NYrture Natto | food. curated.
- Description:
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Meet Ann Yonetani, the founder/owner and microbiologist behind NYrture New York Natto, an artisanal Japanese natto maker located in Brooklyn, NY. If there's one thing that gets Ann excited, it's bacteria. Ask her about it and her face lights up, she adjusts her glasses, her body settles more comfortably in her chair. She could talk for hours about the microbial worlds that symbiotically live inside us and all around us, a passion that both challenges and fascinates her. Not surprisingly, Ann sees herself as a bacteria farmer more than a natto maker (a distinction I find endlessly charming). By cultivating a healthy environment for growing good bacteria, her soybeans actively ferment into the superfood Japanese call: natto. A food jam-packed with nutrients and health/wellness benefits. This is where her evangelism begins.
To Ann's knowledge, only 3-4 small companies make natto in America, a very tiny market compared to Japan where natto is ubiquitous. Walk into any supermarket or corner store in Japan, you'll easily find over a dozen options for natto. It's a savory morning ritual there, traditionally eaten over warm rice often mixed with soy sauce or a raw egg and scallions. "A power breakfast food," Ann explains "their version of a protein shake or acai bowl." But unfortunately, in America, natto has little exposure. It hasn't reached the popularity of Japanese ramen or sushi. Ann wants to change that.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- Eating With My Five Senses
- Project:
- Food. Curated.
- Duration:
- 12:30