All Topics  
Amazake

 
Amazake

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Amazake
 
 
  Topics Amazake Topic Home

is a traditional sweet, low-alcoholic Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
ese drink made from fermented rice
Rice

Rice is a staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in tropical Latin America, and East Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia, making it the second-most consumed cereal grain, after maize....
. Amazake dates from the Kofun period
Kofun period

The is an era in the history of Japan from around 250 to 538. The word kofun is Japanese for the type of tumuluss dating from this era. The Kofun period follows the Yayoi period....
, and it is mentioned in the Nihon Shoki
Nihon Shoki

The , sometimes translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history of Japan. It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete extant historical record of ancient Japan....
. It is part of the family of traditional Japanese foods made using that includes miso
Miso

is a traditional Japanese cuisine produced by fermentation rice, barley and/or soybeans, with salt and the fungus , the most typical miso being made with soy....
, soy sauce
Soy sauce

Soy sauce , soya sauce , or shoyu is a fermentation sauce made from soybeans , roasted cereal, water and Sodium chloride. Soy sauce was invented in China, where it has been used as a condiment for close to 2,500 years....
, and sake
Sake

Sake is a Japanese alcoholic beverage made from rice.This beverage is called sake in English, but in Japanese language, sake or Honorific speech in Japanese refers to alcoholic drinks in general....
.

The basic recipe
Recipe

A recipe is a set of instructions that show how to prepare or make something, especially a culinary dish .Modern culinary recipes normally consist of several components:...
 for amazake has been used for hundreds of years. Koji
Aspergillus oryzae

Aspergillus oryzae is a hypha fungus used in Chinese cuisine and Japanese cuisine which fermentation soybeans to produce soy sauce and miso....
 is added to cooled whole grain rice causing enzyme
Enzyme

Enzymes are biomolecules that catalysis chemical reactions. Almost all enzymes are proteins. In enzymatic reactions, the molecules at the beginning of the process are called Substrate , and the enzyme converts them into different molecules, the products....
s to break down the carbohydrate
Carbohydrate

Carbohydrates or saccharides are the most abundant of the four major classes of biomolecules. They fill numerous roles in living things, such as the storage and transport of energy and structural components ....
s into simpler unrefined sugar
Sugar

Sugar is a class of edible crystalline substances, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose. Human taste buds interpret its flavor as sweet. Sugar as a basic food carbohydrate primarily comes from sugar cane and from sugar beet, but also appears in fruit, honey, sorghum, sugar maple , and in many other sources....
s. As the mixture incubates, sweetness develops naturally.

Amazake can be used as a dessert
Dessert

Dessert is a course that typically comes at the end of a meal, usually consisting of sweet food but sometimes of a strongly-flavored one, such as some cheeses....
, snack
Snack food

A snack food is seen in Western culture as a type of food not meant to be eaten as a main meal of the day ? breakfast, lunch, or dinner ? but one rather that is intended to assuage a person's hunger between these meals, providing a brief supply of energy for the body....
, natural sweetening agent
Sugar substitute

A sugar substitute is a food additive that duplicates the effect of sugar in taste, but usually has less food energy. Some sugar substitutes are natural and some are synthetic....
, baby food, salad dressing
Salad

Salad is a mixture of cold or hot foods, usually including vegetables and/or fruits, often with a dressing, occasionally nuts or croutons, and sometimes with the addition of meat, fish, pasta, cheese, eggs, or whole grains....
 or smoothie
Smoothie

A smoothie is a blended, chilled, sweet beverage made from fresh fruit. In addition to fruit, many smoothies include crushed ice, frozen fruit, honey or frozen yogurt, although some smoothies are 100% fruit....
.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Amazake'
Start a new discussion about 'Amazake'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


is a traditional sweet, low-alcoholic Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
ese drink made from fermented rice
Rice

Rice is a staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in tropical Latin America, and East Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia, making it the second-most consumed cereal grain, after maize....
. Amazake dates from the Kofun period
Kofun period

The is an era in the history of Japan from around 250 to 538. The word kofun is Japanese for the type of tumuluss dating from this era. The Kofun period follows the Yayoi period....
, and it is mentioned in the Nihon Shoki
Nihon Shoki

The , sometimes translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history of Japan. It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete extant historical record of ancient Japan....
. It is part of the family of traditional Japanese foods made using that includes miso
Miso

is a traditional Japanese cuisine produced by fermentation rice, barley and/or soybeans, with salt and the fungus , the most typical miso being made with soy....
, soy sauce
Soy sauce

Soy sauce , soya sauce , or shoyu is a fermentation sauce made from soybeans , roasted cereal, water and Sodium chloride. Soy sauce was invented in China, where it has been used as a condiment for close to 2,500 years....
, and sake
Sake

Sake is a Japanese alcoholic beverage made from rice.This beverage is called sake in English, but in Japanese language, sake or Honorific speech in Japanese refers to alcoholic drinks in general....
.

The basic recipe
Recipe

A recipe is a set of instructions that show how to prepare or make something, especially a culinary dish .Modern culinary recipes normally consist of several components:...
 for amazake has been used for hundreds of years. Koji
Aspergillus oryzae

Aspergillus oryzae is a hypha fungus used in Chinese cuisine and Japanese cuisine which fermentation soybeans to produce soy sauce and miso....
 is added to cooled whole grain rice causing enzyme
Enzyme

Enzymes are biomolecules that catalysis chemical reactions. Almost all enzymes are proteins. In enzymatic reactions, the molecules at the beginning of the process are called Substrate , and the enzyme converts them into different molecules, the products....
s to break down the carbohydrate
Carbohydrate

Carbohydrates or saccharides are the most abundant of the four major classes of biomolecules. They fill numerous roles in living things, such as the storage and transport of energy and structural components ....
s into simpler unrefined sugar
Sugar

Sugar is a class of edible crystalline substances, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose. Human taste buds interpret its flavor as sweet. Sugar as a basic food carbohydrate primarily comes from sugar cane and from sugar beet, but also appears in fruit, honey, sorghum, sugar maple , and in many other sources....
s. As the mixture incubates, sweetness develops naturally.

Amazake can be used as a dessert
Dessert

Dessert is a course that typically comes at the end of a meal, usually consisting of sweet food but sometimes of a strongly-flavored one, such as some cheeses....
, snack
Snack food

A snack food is seen in Western culture as a type of food not meant to be eaten as a main meal of the day ? breakfast, lunch, or dinner ? but one rather that is intended to assuage a person's hunger between these meals, providing a brief supply of energy for the body....
, natural sweetening agent
Sugar substitute

A sugar substitute is a food additive that duplicates the effect of sugar in taste, but usually has less food energy. Some sugar substitutes are natural and some are synthetic....
, baby food, salad dressing
Salad

Salad is a mixture of cold or hot foods, usually including vegetables and/or fruits, often with a dressing, occasionally nuts or croutons, and sometimes with the addition of meat, fish, pasta, cheese, eggs, or whole grains....
 or smoothie
Smoothie

A smoothie is a blended, chilled, sweet beverage made from fresh fruit. In addition to fruit, many smoothies include crushed ice, frozen fruit, honey or frozen yogurt, although some smoothies are 100% fruit....
. The traditional drink (prepared by combining amazake and water, heated to a simmer, and often topped with a pinch of finely grated ginger) was popular with street vendors, and it is still served at inns and teahouses
Tea house

A tea house or tearoom is a venue centered on drinking tea. Their function varies widely depending on the culture, and some cultures have a variety of distinct tea-centered houses or parlors that all qualify under the English language term "tea house" or "tea room."...
. Many Shinto shrines provide or sell this in the New Year. In the 20th century, an instant version became available.

Amazake is believed to be very nutritious, with no additives, preservative
Preservative

A preservative is a natural or synthetic chemical compound that is added to products such as foods, pharmaceuticals, paints, biological samples, wood, etc....
s, added sugars or salts
Edible salt

Salt is a dietary mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride that is essential for animal life, but toxic to most land plants. Salt flavor is one of the taste#Basic_tastes, an important Salting_ and a popular food seasoning....
. Outside of Japan, it is often sold in health food
Health food

Health food is a term that has been used in the United States since the 1920s and refers to specific foods claimed to be especially beneficial to health....
 shops.

See also

  • Makgeolli
  • Gamju
    Gamju

    Gamju or dansul is a Korean wine, made from rice fermented with yeast-cake. Because its fermentation is incomplete, its alcohol content is relatively low....
  • Choujiu
    Choujiu

    Choujiu is a type of Chinese Fermentation alcoholic beverage brewed from glutinous rice. It is very thick and has a milky white color, which is sometimes compared to jade....
  • Com ru?u
    Com ru?u

    Com ru?u is a traditional dessert from Southern Vietnam, made from glutinous rice.To prepare com ru?u, glutinous rice is cooked, mixed with yeast, and rolled into small balls....
  • Rice milk
    Rice milk

    Rice milk is a kind of grain milk processed from rice. It is mostly made from brown rice and commonly unsweetened, the sweetness in most rice milk varieties is generated by a natural enzymes process, dividing the carbohydrates into sugars, especially glucose, similar to the Japanese Amazake....