What is Koji Starter for Shoyu in Sachet - Special Product from "Hishiroku" Shop, Kyoto

Established since 300 years ago, this is the koji starter for shoyu, made by the long-established store "Hishiroku."

What makes this koji starter special is the well-balanced enzymatic power and good aroma of traditional koji.

Please use it for making fresh and delicious soy sauce.

This product contains 20g of koji starter (Aspergillus) that can be stored for a long time, in conveniently sachet package so you can open it just as much as you need.

This is a very suitable koji starter/koji seed for those who want to make koji at home.

20g of this koji starter can be used for 15kg of rice in koji-making (the weight of rice before adding water is 15 kg).

What is Koji Starter/Koji Seed?

Koji starter or koji seed is the Aspergillus spore that becomes the source of koji.

Fermented foods such as miso and amazake (sweet sake) are made from raw koji.

And if there is no koji starter, you cannot make koji.
In the brewing industry, we call the koji starter as "sprouts."
The appearance of the koji starter's bud popped out and its whitish hyphae grows resembles the bean sprouts and budding trees figure, so it's called like that.

Comparative Chart of Koji Starter

	Choukaku-kin Koji Starter	Kairyou Choukaku-kin Koji Starter	Koji Starter for Miso	Kinzanji Koji Starter	Koji Starter for Shouyu
Features	The finished result is white koji. Basic koji starter that suitable for any kojis.	Ideal for amazake (sweet sake). The finished result is the most white-colored that other koji starter. Recommended for white miso.	Ideal for rice and barley/wheat miso. The finised result will have a balanced taste.	Ideal for bean koji. Increase the flavor of bean miso (mame miso).	Ideal for shoyu (Japanese soy sauce). It will have delicious result.
Colors
Amazake (Sweet Sake)	Very suitable	Very suitable	Usable, but not recommended	Usable, but not recommended	Usable, but not recommended
Shio Koji (Salt Koji)	Very suitable	Very suitable	Usable, but not recommended	Usable, but not recommended	Usable, but not recommended
White Miso	Very suitable	Very suitable	Usable, but not recommended	Suitable	Usable, but not recommended
Rice and barley/wheat miso	Suitable	Suitable	Very suitable	Suitable	Usable, but not recommended
Bean miso	Suitable	Suitable	Suitable	Very suitable	Usable, but not recommended
Shouyu (Japanese soy sauce)	Suitable	Usable, but not recommended	Suitable	Suitable	Very suitable

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What is Koji?

Give water to raw grains (rice, barley, beans, etc.), sprinkle seeds on steamed grains, and culture the seeds under temperature conditions suitable for the growth of Aspergillus oryzae.
That is how this koji starter is made.

Koji has so many kinds of enzymes that it is said to be a treasure house of enzymes, and it decomposes grains with its power.
Also, koji itself is also a nutritious food filled with sugar, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, etc. All these nutritions are made by the koji starter (Aspergillus oryzae).
> Using koji, you can make traditional fermented foods such as sake, authentic shochu, mirin, miso, soy sauce, vinegar, amazake (sweet sake), etc.

Health Benefits of Koji

When the intestinal environment (intestinal flora) gets better, the condition of your skin will be better and immunity will be improved.
It is fermented food that arrange this intestinal environment.
And, fermented foods are always made by microorganisms that induce fermentation.

The familiar ones are such as Aspergillus oryzae, Bacillus natto, Lactobacillus, and other bacteria/fungus.
Among them, the one that creates miso, shoyu (Japanese soy sauce) and sake is koji starter (Aspergillus oryzae).
This koji starter (Aspergillus oryzae) matches well with Japan's climate, and it was found in the Muromachi Period (1336–1573)

Major Nutrients of Koji

• ■ Vitamin B1 : Helps produce energy | Fatigue recovery | Suppress irritation/stress feeling | Amnesia prevention | Helps breaking down carbohydrates

• ■ Vitamin B2 : Helps the metabolism of skin | Helps breaking don lipids | Accelerate growth speed | Sebum control | Prevent oral ulcer/stomatitis

• ■ Vitamin B6 : Reduce premenstrual syndrome (PMS) | Improve immunity | Prevent arteriosclerosis | Helps breaking down proteins and lipids | Prevent oral ulcer/stomatitis | Suppress the excitation of nerve cells

• ■ Vitamin H (Biotin) : Suppressing the cause of atopic dermatitis | Prevent diabetes | Alleviate epilation and gray hairs

• ■ Pantothenic acid : Stress resistant | Helps breaking down lipids | Detoxification from chemical compound | Increase good cholesterol | Maintaining the health of skin | Increase immunity

• ■ Essential amino acids : Among the 20 types of amino acids making up proteins, nine kinds of them can not be synthesized in the body. If there are any lacks of them, muscle, blood, bone cannot be made.
  These nutrients can be consumed in supplements, but when ingested from koji based food, the absorption rate in body is over 90%.

The Amount of The Koji Rice That Can be Made and the Amount of Rice and Koji Starter Used

Portion of rice

Portion of koji starter

Amount of finished koji (estimated)

Note: 合 is a Japanese unit of measurement, usually used to measure rice, sake, etc. (1合 equal to approx. 150 grams, 0,18 liters, or 0,33 metres square)

This is just a reference to the amount of koji rice and koji starter seed.
For the koji starter, it is easier to make koji rice if you use koji starter in bigger amount. Even if you use a lot of koji starter, there will be no problem.

The Amount of Miso That Can Be Made and the Amount of Ingredients Used

Finished Miso	2.5 kg	5 kg	7.5 kg	10 kg	12.5 kg	15 kg	17.5 kg	20 kg	22.5 kg	25 kg
Rice Koji	1 kg	2 kg	3 kg	4 kg	5 kg	6 kg	7 kg	8 kg	9 kg	10 kg
Soybeans	500 gr	1 kg	1.5 kg	2 kg	2.5 kg	3 kg	3.5 kg	4 kg	4.5 kg	5 kg
Salt	300 gr	600 gr	900 gr	1.2 kg	1.5 kg	1.8 kg	2.1 kg	2.4 kg	2.7 kg	3 kg

Finished Miso	2.5 kg	5 kg	7.5 kg	10 kg	12.5 kg
Rice Koji	1 kg	2 kg	3 kg	4 kg	5 kg
Soybeans	500 gr	1 kg	1.5 kg	2 kg	2.5 kg
Salt	300 gr	600 gr	900 gr	1.2 kg	1.5 kg

15 kg	17.5 kg	20 kg	22.5 kg	25 kg
6 kg	7 kg	8 kg	9 kg	10 kg
3 kg	3.5 kg	4 kg	4.5 kg	5 kg
1.8 kg	2.1 kg	2.4 kg	2.7 kg	3 kg

This is the portion for miso with salt concentration 12.5% (sweet flavor).


For the details of how to make koji rice, please go to this page >>How to Make Koji Rice
■Recipes that use koji rice >>How to Make Miso >>How to Make Shio Koji >>How to Make Amazake (Sweet Sake)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How long is the life of koji starter (koji seed)? How long can I keep it?

・ If the package is unopened and stored in a vegetable compartment of a refrigerator etc., the standard for storage period is about 6 months.
・ After the package is opened, please seal it with zip lock etc. and save it in a vegetable room of a refrigerator. With this, you can save the koji starter for about 6 months.

How can I store the finished koji rice?

・ If you want to store it for 1-2 days, please put it in cold dark place with temperature lower than 15ºC.
・ If you want to store the koji rice for 2-3 days, please put it in the refrigerator.
・ If you want to store it for more than 3 weeks, please put it in the freezer. In there, the koji starter can be saved until 3 months.

Can I drink koji starter as it is?

Because it's no a drink, please do not drink it.
For the supplement, we recommed you the Ueda's Natural Fermented Lactic Acid Bacteria

How much shoud I use the koji starter when making koji rice?

The amount of koji starter is about 1.3g-10g for 1kg of rice (rice for raw material) (about 0.2g-2g per 150g of rice)
If you are not used to koji rice making (of first time try) it's better to use the koji starter more.
Even if you use much of it, there will be no problem.

・About the finised amount:
If you steam the rice, the steamed rice will be 1.8-2 times heavier than original/raw weight.
Then, after the koji rice is completed the weight will be 0.9 times of the weight after steamed. Thus, the finished amount of rice koji will be 1.62 (1.8ｘ0.9)～1.8 (2ｘ0.9) times from the weight of original/raw rice.
For example, if the raw rice is 1kg, the finised amount of koji rice is 1.62-1.8 kg.
(This is an estimated amount. The amount of finished koji rice depends on the soaking condition, steaming condition, and the condition of fermentation process.)

The color of finished rice koji is reddish brown and smells strange, can I use it?

There is a high possibility that other bacteria are mixed and proliferating in the process of making it. Please do not use it.
After you sterilized all the equipments, please try increasing the amount of koji starter when making koji rice next time (about 3-4 times more) so it's easier to ferment.
Also, please be careful about temperature control during fermentation process.

Customer's Testimonies

The Benefits of Handmade Koji Rice

• ■　You know exactly what ingredients are being used. Formerly, in the Japanese family, miso, shoyu, amazake etc. were homemaded with koji. However, the eating habits change with the time, and miso, shoyu, amazake changed from "things to make" to "things to buy." Under such circumstances, there are many people who are uneasy because they don't know what type of rice is used, in foods such as miso and shio koji (salt koji) available at supermarkets etc. If it's handmade, you can make it with pesticide-free rice prepared by yourself so it's safe.

• ■　Handmade is fun! When Kawashimaya's staffs tried to make handmade koji rice, they're impressed that their hands became so smooth. It's a famous story that because they engage in sake-making, the hands of chief brewer at sake (Japanese liquor) brewery is beautiful. In koji rice's nutrients, there are a lot of components that make the skin beautiful. Then, if you make koji rice by yourself, you will take care of it like your own child. Thus, the miso and amazake you made will become more delicious.

• ■　It's more economical. When making miso, you will need koji in kilograms. If you buy it, it will be really pricey. For that, if you make your own koji using koji starter (Apergillus oryzae), it will be much more economical because you can even make koji rice from 15kg of rice.

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Message from Hishiroku Corp., the Maker of Koji Seed Starter - Special Product from Hishiroku Shop, Kyoto

In the main region of "The Land of Royal Castle" of Kyoto, standing there for over 300 years is the reputable "Hishiroku" Shop. In its long history, we devotedly making steady progress of koji starter (koji seed).

We believe that small activities hidden in koji starter's Aspergillus will eventually produce big things and will become life force for tomorrow, so we are making research and efforts to deliver the pure, stable, and high quality products of koji starter.

We are looking forward to your further patronage in using Hishiroku's koji starter for making koji. Hishiroku Corp.

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