How experimental are you willing to get with breakfast food?

[jrufusj]

I have heard the Korean version of natto could knock out a durian..............

My Korean friends all comment on the mildness of Japanese natto, the Japanese stuff you can't smell until you open it, but the Korean stuff I smelled at a Korean market here in Japan could be smelled over a foot away!

I'm not sure I would call the Korean products a "version of natto". They are fermented soybean products, but they have a completely different texture, aroma, and taste. Additionally, they are generally used in different ways. Although they are very different from miso, I would say their use more closely approximates that of miso than of natto.

Doen jang is the milder of the two products, but is what you are more likely to have encountered in Japan. It is most commonly used as the base for a soup/stew called doen jang jjigae and also as a dipping condiment, either alone or combined with gochujang. I also like it spread on fish before they are grilled, something like what is sold in Japanese restaurants in Korea as misoyaki, but with a stronger taste. This use seems not to be so common in Korea, but I like to do it.

The stronger product is cheong guk jang. It is smellier than doen jang. The only way I have really ever eaten it is as the base for a very strong soup. Most Koreans will only eat cheong guk jang in restaurants because the smell is impossible to get out of one's house.

Neither of these products have the "slimy" texture that so offends many westerners who try natto.

Question: Is it the smell or the texture that is offputting to many Kansai-bred Japanese? I suspect it is the smell, since (1) Kansai food tastes seem to me to be more subtle and (2) other "slimy" products seem to be popular throughout Japan.

Incidentally, when I have shared by stashes of natto with Korean friends, more than half have not liked it because of the texture.

Jim