Part I Introduction

The availability of fermented foods has a long history among different cultures. The acceptability of fermented foods also differ because of cultural habits. A product highly acceptable in one culture may not be so acceptable by consumers in another culture. The number of fermented food products is countless. The manufacturing processes of fermented products vary considerably owing to variables such as food groups, form and characteristics of the nal products, kind of ingredients used, and cultural diversity. It is beyond the scope of this chapter to address all the manufacturing processes used to produce fermented

1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 3 1.2 Fermented Cereal Products (Breads and Related Products) ............................................................ 4

1.2.1 Kinds of Products and Ingredients ...................................................................................... 4 1.2.2 Regular Bread ...................................................................................................................... 6 1.2.3 Retarded Dough ................................................................................................................... 6 1.2.4 Flat (Layered) Bread ............................................................................................................ 6 1.2.5 Croissant and Danish Pastries ............................................................................................. 7 1.2.6 Steamed Bread (Mantou) ..................................................................................................... 8

1.3 Fermented Soy Products .................................................................................................................. 8 1.3.1 Kinds of Products and Ingredients ...................................................................................... 8 1.3.2 Soy Sauce ........................................................................................................................... 10 1.3.3 Fermented Whole Soybeans .............................................................................................. 12

1.3.3.1 Ordinary (Itohiki) Natto .................................................................................... 12 1.3.3.2 Hama-natto and Dou-chi ................................................................................... 12

1.3.4 Fermented Soy Pastes .........................................................................................................14 1.3.5 Fermented Tofu ..................................................................................................................14