Holding a lecture on Koji “Unleashing the magic of Koji: a natural umami enhancer”
2024/10/7
On October 7th, the Embassy of Japan, in collaboration with the Brasserie San-O, which manufactures and sells Koji, mold-inoculated grains, in Montreal, held a lecture; "Unleashing the Magic of Koji: Nature's Flavor Enhancer" at the Embassy’s Information and Culture Centre. The Embassy welcomed Ms. Noriko Suzuki, the president of Brasserie San-O as a lecturer, with a targeted audience of professionals in the food and beverage business.
Mr. FURUYA Tokuro, Deputy Head of Mission and Minister, gave the opening remarks, expressing his wish that the participants would deepen their knowledge of Japanese Koji, which is also used in Canadian whisky, and enjoy using it in a variety of dishes in the future.
At the lecture Ms. Suzuki shared her wide-ranging knowledge, including the mechanism of Koji fermentation, production and aging methods, and the various effects of the enzymes produced in food ingredients. Ms. Suzuki explained that there are many different types of Koji, and that it is already widely used in restaurants around the world, as well as Koji’s fascinating ability to transform even ingredients that would normally be considered waste, such as coffee grounds and bread that has been aged for days, into delicious foodstuffs.
Food and beverage professionals, as well as teachers and students from culinary schools, from the Ottawa-Gatineau region attended the event, which also included a lively Q&A session. They tasted ingredients with Koji provided as samples, confirmed the depth of their flavours, and were impressed by the great potential of using Koji. Participants said that it was a great opportunity to gain knowledge they didn't have before, and that they would like to try using Koji in various ways in the future.
Mr. FURUYA Tokuro, Deputy Head of Mission and Minister, gave the opening remarks, expressing his wish that the participants would deepen their knowledge of Japanese Koji, which is also used in Canadian whisky, and enjoy using it in a variety of dishes in the future.
At the lecture Ms. Suzuki shared her wide-ranging knowledge, including the mechanism of Koji fermentation, production and aging methods, and the various effects of the enzymes produced in food ingredients. Ms. Suzuki explained that there are many different types of Koji, and that it is already widely used in restaurants around the world, as well as Koji’s fascinating ability to transform even ingredients that would normally be considered waste, such as coffee grounds and bread that has been aged for days, into delicious foodstuffs.
Food and beverage professionals, as well as teachers and students from culinary schools, from the Ottawa-Gatineau region attended the event, which also included a lively Q&A session. They tasted ingredients with Koji provided as samples, confirmed the depth of their flavours, and were impressed by the great potential of using Koji. Participants said that it was a great opportunity to gain knowledge they didn't have before, and that they would like to try using Koji in various ways in the future.
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| Minister FURUYA delivering opening remarks |
Scene from the lecture |
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| Scene from the lecture | Tasting samples |