What is Koji Starter - Powdered Kairyou Chouhaku-Kin Fungal Seed?
Established 300 years ago, this is the Kairyou Chouhaku-kin variety of fungal seed koji starter in the powder form, sachet package made by the long-established store "Hishiroku".
This koji starter (koji seed) is well-balanced in phenol power and the excellent aroma of traditional koji). Powdered Kairyou Chouhaku-kin is characterized by the short to middle length mycelium and is excellent in both glycation power and proteolysis power among the white-colored type of koji starter spores.
Compared to the Chouhaku-kin variant, the Kairyou Chouhaku-kin is even whiter in color so it is perfect to make white rice koji, amazake, white miso, and other light colored fermented food.
This product contains 20g of koji starter (Aspergillus) that can be stored for a long time in a convenient sachet package, so you can open it just as much as you need.
20g of this koji starter can be used for 15kg of rice in koji-making (the weight of rice before adding water is 15kg).
What is Koji Starter/Koji Seed?
Koji starter or koji seed is the Aspergillus spore that becomes the source of koji.
In the brewing industry, we call the koji starter "sprouts". We can make koji to produce fermented foods such as miso and amazake (sweet sake) with these sprouts.
The appearance of the koji starters bud popped out, and its whitish hyphae grow the bean sprouts and budding trees figure, so it's called like that.
Various Kinds of Koji According to the Purpose
Chouhaku-kin Koji Starter
- For making Amazake (Sweet Sake): Very suitable
- For making Shio Koji (Salt Koji): Very suitable
- For making White Miso: Very suitable
- For making Rice and barley/wheat miso: Suitable
- For making Bean miso: Suitable
- For making Shouyu (Japanese soy sauce): Suitable
Features
The finished result is white koji. Basic koji starter that suitable for any kojis.
Kairyou Chouhaku-kin Koji Starter
- For making Amazake (Sweet Sake): Very suitable
- For making Shio Koji (Salt Koji): Very suitable
- For making White Miso: Very suitable
- For making Rice and barley/wheat miso: Suitable
- For making Bean miso: Suitable
- For making Shouyu (Japanese soy sauce): Usable, but not recommended
Features
Ideal for amazake (sweet sake). The finished result is the most white-colored that other koji starter. Recommended for white miso.
Koji Starter for Miso
- For making Amazake (Sweet Sake): Usable, but not recommended
- For making Shio Koji (Salt Koji): Usable, but not recommended
- For making White Miso: Usable, but not recommended
- For making Rice and barley/wheat miso: Very suitable
- For making Bean miso: Suitable
- For making Shouyu (Japanese soy sauce): Suitable
Features
Ideal for rice and barley/wheat miso. The finised result will have a balanced taste.
Kinzanji Koji Starter
- For making Amazake (Sweet Sake): Usable, but not recommended
- For making Shio Koji (Salt Koji): Usable, but not recommended
- For making White Miso: Suitable
- For making Rice and barley/wheat miso: Suitable
- For making Bean miso: Very suitable
- For making Shouyu (Japanese soy sauce): Suitable
Features
Ideal for bean koji. Increase the flavor of bean miso (mame miso).
Koji Starter for Shouyu
- For making Amazake (Sweet Sake): Usable, but not recommended
- For making Shio Koji (Salt Koji): Usable, but not recommended
- For making White Miso: Usable, but not recommended
- For making Rice and barley/wheat miso: Usable, but not recommended
- For making Bean miso: Usable, but not recommended
- For making Shouyu (Japanese soy sauce): Very suitable
Features
Ideal for shouyu (Japanese soy sauce). It will have delicious result.
More Fermented Foods Recipe from Kawashima The Japanstore
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 enzymes that it is said to be a treasure house of enzymes and could decompose grains with its power. Also, koji itself is a nutritious food filled with sugar, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, etc. All these nutritions are made by the koji starter (Aspergillus oryzae).
With 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, your skin condition will be better, and immunity will be improved. It is a fermented food that arranges this intestinal environment. And, fermented foods are always made by microorganisms that induce fermentation.
The familiar ones are Aspergillus oryzae, Bacillus natto, Lactobacillus, and other bacteria/fungus. The one that creates miso, shouyu (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
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| Vitamin B2 |
・Helps the metabolism of skin
・Helps breaking down lipids
・Accelerate growth speed
・Sebum control
・Prevent oral ulcer/stomatitis
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| 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
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| Vitamin H (Biotin) |
・Suppressing the cause of atopic dermatitis
・Prevent diabetes
・Alleviate epilation and gray hairs
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| Pantothenic Acid |
・Stress resistant
・Helps breaking down lipids
・Detoxification from chemical compound
・Increase good cholesterol
・Maintaining the health of skin
・Increase immunity
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| 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%.
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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 table references the amount of koji rice and koji starter seed.
It's easier to make koji rice for the koji starter if you use koji starter in a larger amount. There will be no problem even if you use a lot of koji starters.
The Benefits of Handmade Koji Rice
You know exactly what ingredients are being used.
Formerly, miso, shouyu, amazake, etc., were homemade with koji in the Japanese family. However, eating habits change with time, and miso, shouyu, amazake changed from "things to make" to "things to buy." Under such circumstances, many people 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 staff tried to make handmade koji rice, they were impressed that their hands became so smooth. It's a famous story that because they engage in sake-making, the hands of a chief brewer at a sake (Japanese liquor) brewery are 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 a koji starter (Aspergillus oryzae), it will be much more economical because you can even make koji rice from 15kg of rice.
The Steamed Rice, is What Determines the Quality of Koji Rice
If the rice used in koji rice making is cooked with a rice cooker or the like, the amount of water (60% or more) becomes too much, and it won't be finished as good koji rice.
In order to make the rice with moderate water content (about 38%), it's necessary to "steam" the rice with proper steam.
The koji-making professionals make steamed rice with a bamboo steamer (seiro).
Furthermore, by using a steaming cloth made of tetoron, the time loss (temperature drop) caused by the rice sticking on the cloth can be eliminated so that you can do the seeding step (sprinkling the koji starter on steamed rice) smoothly.
Koji-making Professionals' Favorite Tools! Koji-making's Best Friends
Strong against high temperature, excellent in steaming.
Rice won't stick to the cloth, a convenient steaming cloth.
It's also useful for moisture control during the warming of koji.
Steamed rice is the key to making koji.
Using bamboo steamer/seiro, steam the rice with high heat for about 40 minutes.
It's also a helpful tool for daily dishes.
Tips for Making Steamed Rice from the Professionals
A bamboo steamer is recommended to steam the rice!
Cover the steamer basket when steam/vapor comes out from the surface of the rice and the surfaces become transparent.
Steam it for about 40 minutes (recommended) after putting on the lid.
When steaming in the bamboo steamer with two or more rows, change the order of rows midway through the steaming process.
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.
Q & A About Koji Starter
How long is the life of a koji starter (koji seed)? How long can I keep it?
・ If the package is unopened and stored in a vegetable compartment of a refrigerator, the standard storage period is about 6 months.
・ After the package is opened, please seal it with a ziplock, 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 a cold dark place with a 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 the freezer, the koji starter can be saved until 3 months.
How much should 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 still not used to koji rice making (first-time try), it's better to use the koji starter more.
Because even if you use much of it, there will be no problem.
About the finised amount:
・ The steamed rice will be 1.8-2 times heavier than the original/raw weight if you steam the rice.
・ Then, after the koji rice is completed, the weight will be 0.9 times the weight after steaming. Thus, the finished rice koji will be 1.62 (1.8ｘ0.9)～1.8 (2ｘ0.9) times from the original/raw rice weight.
・ For example, if the raw rice is 1kg, the finished 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 the finished rice koji is reddish-brown and smells strange. Can I use it?
There is a high possibility that other bacteria are mixed and increasing in the process of making it. Please don't use it.
After you have sterilized all the equipment, 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.
In addition, please be careful about temperature control during the fermentation process.
Customer's Voice
I drink amazake all year round, so I make my own koji at home.
The improved choshiro fungus is safe because the sugar content of amazake can be stably increased. (Female, 60s)
For the first time, I made koji from a koji starter.
Thanks to Kawashima-ya's detailed recipe. Even as a beginner, I was able to make it without failure. I felt that mycelium was a little low, but I think it was a success because I made a sweet amazake. The next time I make it, I feel like I can do better than this time. (Female, 50s)
The amazake on the market is too sweet, so I bought this koji starter.
A delicious amazake with a refreshing sweetness and aroma of koji was made in my home. I'm satisfied. (Female, 30s)
Need More Info About The Koji Starter's Enzymatic Contents?
We have compiled more informations about our koji starters. Please click the button below for details.
| Product Details |
| Name |
Koji Starter (Koji Seed) - Powdered Kairyou Chouhaku-Kin Fungal Seed in Sachet |
| Netto |
20g |
| Expired Date |
About half a year |
| Storage Guide |
Please put it in cold dark place with temperature lower than 15ºC. |
| Important Points |
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Be sure to clean up tools, clothes, hands, etc., correctly, and be careful with germs.
Please use it as soon as possible after you open it.
This product is for rice koji and barley koji. Please do not use it for other purposes.
We will deliver it in a thick envelope.
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