Tuesday 30 October 2012

36 hours later

With much trepidation, I opened my pot. Koji has grown well--- at least in parts. I could see in some parts, the rice grains are covered by velvety white fur. In other parts, they are white, but still retained some opaque texture. The rice seemed to be mostly stuck together and in one place, overgrown koji was beginning to turn yellow-- when that happens, it will become unsuitable for making sake, though suitable for miso paste. While it is still 'young' with white fur, koji is full of amylase and thus has more power to change starch into sweetness. When koji turns yellow, it starts to have more protease , thus acquiring the smell not desirable in sake but ability to change protein into  what we recognise as 'nice taste'.
As I used brown rice koji, the result had a little brown rice here and there.


Now, I am ready to try what Yoichi Yamada had taught us in his How to Make Doburoku a la Champagne in your Kitchen (in Japanese).

I cooked 3 cups of rice with water for 2 cups of rice as he suggested. When the rice was ready, I added a liter of chilled boiled tap water, which brought down the temperature. I boiled tap water as chlorine is supposed to interfere with fermentation.

Then I mixed 200g of my own home made koji.


After adding some wine yeast, I wondered--- I am supposed to give some lactic acid bacteria so that harmful bacteria would not grow in my brew. That's what the book says but I don't have any.



Well, in goes two table spoon full of ASDA's Greek yogurt.
Now it's sealed again in my pot. Should ferment at least for 4-5 days in current climate, I guess.

The rest of the Koji are stored in my Tupperware. I am hoping to mature it a bit more and make miso paste.

1 comment:

  1. this might help you in the future
    http://homebrewsake.com/home/recipe/video-series-and-instructions-for-making-koji-for-sake/

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