Shio Koji is being tooted as the new cooking ingredient. Some people are going as far as to say it’s the new soy sauce or MSG. Professional and home cooks are flocking to it and grabbing it off the shelves in Japan and US alike. There’s blogs devoted to it and cooking classes centered around teaching people how to use it. And despite its foul smell, it’s not hard to see why.
Shio Koji is a mixture of fermented rice, salt, the bacteria Aspergillus oryzae, and water. Although it has just recently hit the markets, it’s secret component, A.oryzae, has a long history that goes back to the 300BCE in China and Japan. In Japan, it’s one of the basic ingredients to make miso, sake, mirin, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Its popularity comes from its ability to cultivate flavor in foods and its power of umami. It adds a slight meatiness and sweetness to the existing flavor of foods; not overpowering, but enhancing the natural flavor of anything you add it to.
Most of all, it’s healthy. Just like yogurt, shio koji includes lactic acid, which aids digestion and helps with intestinal disorders. It also increases the amount of vitamin B1, B2, B6, H and Pateton acid in foods, which helps to fight fatigue. For those worried about blood pressure or bloat, substituting shio koji for salt will give you the same salty flavor with 50% less salt content.
When you buy it packaged or in a jar, it looks a little bit like watered-down porridge. It smells like… feet. My advice? Just don’t smell it! It’s extremely versatile and tasty in cooking. My friends and family in Japan have used it for pickles, salad dressings, marinade, stir fry, and much more. I’ll be posting recipes here as I perfect them!
Here’s the first and the easiest: Shio Koji as salt. For each 1 part salt substitute 2 parts shio koji. (1 teaspoon salt = 2 teaspoons shio koji).
Have you used shio koji? What are your favorite ways to use it?
oh my omiyage 
Interesting facts, never knew about it!
It’s just starting to move overseas! I wonder if it’ll be a fad or one of those long-lasting trends!
I reckon that, as long as it doesn’t have the ill-effects of MSG like allergic reactions, then it would definitely be a good choice for everyone to have.
Hmm I haven’t heard of any allergic reactions, but you never know! It’s much healthier than MSG and it’s gluten free, but we’ll see!
So interesting… i guess its like fish sauce… smells stinky.. taste yummy :)
hahaha yeahh i love fish sauce too!!!
oh wow, I would be interested to experiment with this. looks like the perfect invention ever but as usual, we won’t get it here *sigh*
The lower salt content is a great sales point
you might get it there soon! i heard that it’s already made it to the States :)
It has definitely become a household staple! I started off buying ready-made shio koji, but now make my own from scratch. I especially love it with grilled fish and even steak!
ooo! when you marinate fish and steak, do you add any other seasonings or ingredients? or does shio koji itself do the job?
No other seasoning for grilled fish and I add some chopped garlic cloves for steak. You could add a bit of soy sauce if you find it too bland. So good! :D
Cool! I’m marinating steaks right now using your recipe :) Can’t wait to grill them up!
I’ll have to look for this condiment!
i died laughing when i read that it smells like FEET! how you could eat it after smelling it idk! :)
Hahaha it’s kind of like kimchi and natto – smells bad but somehow tastes good lol
Never tried or heard about it.
I’m still experimenting with it. So far, I’m not sure about the huge craze surrounding it!
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Shio Koji is being “touted” as the new cooking ingredient — not “tooted.”
Haha thank you for the correction :)
Haha thank you for the correction!