How to Make Dried Natto Snacks using Microwave Oven
Natto (納豆) is a superfood of Japanese origin made from fermented soybeans well-recognized for its plenty of nutrients.
However, since the food is stinky with a slimy consistency, many people dislike and can’t eat it.
For those people, there is a recommended way to eat Natto.
In Japan, it also comes in dried form, and the soy snack is called Hoshi Natto (干し納豆).
Nowadays, the dried Natto snack is available on online marketplaces like Amazon, and you might have already tried it.
Dried Natto Snack Recipe using Microwave Oven
Even if not, if you can get regular fresh Natto near where you live, you can easily make such dried Natto snacks using a microwave oven,
as I did today following the directions of this recipe from Rakuten.
According to this article on Olive Hitomawashi, nattokinase in Natto, effective in preventing thrombus formation, is weak to heat.
Therefore, if you cook Natto beans with a microwave oven, you can’t expect health benefits from nattokinase.
However, even in that case, you can take other nutrients!
As you can see in the video above, the dried Natto snack I introduce here is pleasantly crispy and super savory.
So even if you can’t eat fresh Natto, you will like this snack. And I think this treat can delight children as well.
Are you curious? For those who answer yes, lastly, I share my cooking process!
Note that cooking Natto with the microwave oven generates a strong odor.
Instructions
| 1 |  |
Pour the soy sauce that comes with the Natto pack into the container. |
|---|---|---|
| 2 |  |
Stir the beans lightly with chopsticks. |
| 3 |  |
Transfer the sticky beans onto a large plate and separate each grain. |
| 4 |  |
Microwave them at 500 Watts for 4 minutes. |
| 5 |  |
Take the heated beans out of the oven and stir lightly. |
| 6 |  |
Then microwave the grains again at 500 Watts for 1 minute or 2. |
| 7 |  |
Now it’s ready to eat. Enjoy the Natto snack! |
Hi Tomo, this is a great idea and would love to try this. I’m in Canada and make my own natto at home. Microwave ovens vary a lot in their power. How many Watts is your microwave oven? Thanks for sharing on your blog, Cassandra
Thank you for commenting, Cassandra-san!
The maximum output of my microwave oven is 1000 watts and I heated the natto beans at 500 watts both times!
Thanks Tomo. Now I see you mentioned you used 500 watts in your blog. Have you tried adding some potato flour on the outside like commercial hoshi natto?
No, I haven’t. I simply microwave it for this recipe.
Hi, Tomo. Thank you for sharing this receipt. Me and my hubby, we are very inspired of healthy benefits of natto and cook it at home for last 3 months.))) We,bcs that was his idea. So interesting to try dry natto. But we have normal oven, do you have information about temperature and time? Thank you
Hi Yana,
Thank you for commenting. Yes, Natto is a superfood that Japan can boast🙂
According to this recipe on cookpad.com, you can make the natto snack using normal oven by
1. Without preheating, bake the beans at 120 to 130℃ (248 to 266°F) for about 40 minutes,
2. Then, turn over the beans and bake them again at 100 to 110℃ (212 to 230°F) for about 20 minutes,
3. Lastly, let the beans naturally dry for 3 to 4 days at the window.
Hope this helps.
Hi Tomo, I finally tried drying some natto in the microwave. I make my own using organic non-GMO soybeans that are larger than most of the commercial small-bean natto. It took longer to dry them but it worked well! After the first 4 minutes, I reduced the power level to 330W to make sure the outside didn’t harden too quickly and trap moisture inside. I had trouble separating the natto at the beginning (my homemade beans might be wetter too), so spread them in one layer, and after the first 4 minutes in the microwave, was able to easily separate them by hand. They were no longer sticky, but still pliable, and came apart easily. Thanks for the recipe. Next time, going to try some different spice variations!
Hi Cassandra,
I’m glad to hear the method worked well!
It would be fun to try the natto snack with
some spice seasoning like Shichimi Togarashi🙂
Thank you for letting me know the result!
Have you tried putting Natto in an air fryer? Thanks!
Thank you for commenting, Don.
I’ve never made dried natto snacks with the fryer, but it also seems possible, as seen in this Rakuten recipe!