Yamashita Hideyuki
Higuchi Matsunosuke Shoten Co., Ltd., 1-14-2 Harima-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka 545-0022, Japan.
J Fungi (Basel). 2021 Jul 16;7(7):569. doi: 10.3390/jof7070569.
Koji is made by culturing koji mold on grains. Koji has wide-ranging applications, for example, in alcoholic beverages and seasonings. The word 'mold' generally has a bad image, but in Japan, koji mold is valued for its usefulness, and over the years, efforts have been made to make safe, stable, and delicious food products from it. Koji mold spores, essential when making koji, are called koji starter in the industry. From the many available strains, those suitable for the production of each fermented food are chosen based on indicators such as growth rate and enzyme production capacity. In manufacturing using microorganisms, purity and yield are prioritized. However, the production of fermented foods using koji is more complex, with focus not only on the degree of decomposition of raw materials but also on factors influencing overall product design, including palatability, color, smell, and texture. Production can be facilitated by the variety of koji brought about by the diversity of koji mold combined with the solid culture method which increases the amount of enzyme production. In this report, we introduce the history of koji starter in Japan, the characteristics of koji mold in practice, and various fermented foods made from it. In addition, the factors affecting the quality of koji in solid culture are described.
曲是通过在谷物上培养曲霉菌制成的。曲有着广泛的应用，例如在酒精饮料和调味料中。“霉菌”这个词通常给人不好的印象，但在日本，曲霉菌因其有用性而受到重视，多年来，人们一直致力于用它制作出安全、稳定且美味的食品。制作曲时必不可少的曲霉菌孢子在行业中被称为种曲。从众多可用的菌株中，根据生长速度和产酶能力等指标选择适合每种发酵食品生产的菌株。在利用微生物的制造过程中，纯度和产量是首要考虑因素。然而，使用曲制作发酵食品更为复杂，不仅要关注原材料的分解程度，还要考虑影响整体产品设计的因素，包括适口性、颜色、气味和质地。曲霉菌的多样性带来的各种曲，再结合能增加酶产量的固体培养方法，有助于生产。在本报告中，我们介绍了日本种曲的历史、实际应用中曲霉菌的特点以及用它制作的各种发酵食品。此外，还描述了固体培养中影响曲质量的因素。
