JAPAN TRENDS


 

This natto mixer will let you mix to the max! It even has a special setting to recreate the recipes of a revered Japanese Rennaisance man.

Are you a fan of natto? The divisive foodstuff is made from fermented soybeans and is ragingly popular in its native Japan, though some natives (and many, many foreigners) are often left wondering what all the fuss is about. Well, wonder no longer – entertainment company Takara Tomy is coming out with a new version of a device that could help make natto palatable to palates all over the world!

Well, maybe. After all, they already tried it once in 2014. However, the new updated version comes in a stylish black case with upgraded product design, making it a tempting prospective purchase for natives and traveling foreigners alike.

▼ The company even hired a distinguished foreign woman to model the product!

https://youtu.be/vqPO1_Pfpho

So what makes the Ultimate NTO (NTO doesn’t stand for anything; it just kind of sounds like natto) so special? Well, it bills itself as a mixer that can produce natto to the standards of those eaten by historic Japanese artist-cum-gourmet Kitaoji Fusajiro, also known as Rosanjin.

Rosanjin was a Kyoto native who specialized in calligraphy, lacquerwork, ceramic art and engraving – but he loved his food too, and actually served food on the dishes and plates he created to a select club of fellow gourmets.

Rosanjin reportedly said ‘the more you mix natto, the more satisfying the flavor’ and the NTO honors that by offering a special, easy-to use mode that lets you mix at double effectiveness. By flicking the switch on top of the machine to ‘Ultimate’ (極, with a green background), you can add your natto, close the lid and mix dramatically until the little hatch at the side pops out – this means the process is more than halfway complete.

After adding your soy sauce, mix until the door pops open again. Ta-dah! Thoroughly stirred natto, ready to eat!
 

▼ After about a minute and a half of stirring you should have mixed it through about 424 times due to the double-mixing gear, enough for Rosanjin or anyone else

The increase in deliciousness is said to be pretty dramatic, enough so that those who are on the fence about natto could be persuaded to give it a try. The ad contains appetizing shots of hot toasted natto sandwiches and natto-topped egg bowls with avocado chunks, which are admittedly surefire strategies to stimulate foreign eater’s salivary glands.
 

▼ 109 percent deliciousness compared to regular, unmixed fermented soybeans!


 

And hey, Takara Tomy also came out with an Ultimate TKG machine (that’s Tamago Kake Gohan or egg-topped rice) last year, guaranteeing you a fluffy cloud-like egg every time. Buy both in the lineup and try out some scrumptious egg-topped natto! The Ultimate NTO makes its delicious debut this November, and will retail for 3,000 yen (US$27) plus tax.

 

Still unconvinced about the deliciousness of natto? That’s okay. There are other ways to acclimatize yourself to this odorous appetizer, like eating it served with custard pudding or even ice cream, and if all else fails you can just drown it in flavor flakes after you’ve mixed it to a pulp.