Natto is Japan's most polarizing food. Ask Japanese people about it, and you'll get passionate responses—some say it's their favorite comfort food, others admit they can't eat it despite trying for decades. To the uninitiated, natto looks like brown, slimy beans in a styrofoam container. The smell is pungent—funky, earthy, slightly ammonia-like. The texture is mucilaginous and sticky, coating your mouth and tongue. Yet natto is deeply nutritious, has complex umami flavor, and remains a staple Japanese breakfast food. It's a food that polarizes immediately but often converts skeptics once they understand how to eat it properly.
What Is Natto?
Natto is fermented soybeans, traditionally made by inoculating cooked soybeans with a specific bacteria (Bacillus subtilis), then allowing them to ferment for 24 hours. The fermentation creates the characteristic sticky texture, pungent smell, and complex umami flavor. A single serving typically contains about 50 grams of fermented soybeans, sold in small styrofoam containers.
The fermentation process develops numerous beneficial compounds—vitamin K2 (present in few foods, important for bone health), nattokinase (an enzyme that may support cardiovascular health), and probiotics that support digestive health. These nutritional benefits made natto historically valuable for people seeking high-quality nutrition from simple, affordable ingredients.
The Challenge: Why People Find Natto Difficult
Smell: The smell is distinctive and strong. It comes from the fermentation process and compounds like ammonia that develop during aging. Many people find the smell off-putting initially, though those who eat natto regularly often find it appealing.
Texture: The slimy, mucilaginous texture is unfamiliar to most Westerners. Strings of sticky substance connect the beans—this is normal and desired among natto enthusiasts. The texture coats your mouth and throat, which some find unpleasant.
Taste: Natto is intensely savory (umami-forward) with subtle sweetness and funk. It's not the flavor that challenges people—it's the unfamiliar combination of smell, texture, and taste together.
Psychological Challenge: Knowing it's fermented and smelly creates psychological barriers. The first encounter with natto requires opening your mind and accepting unfamiliar sensations.
How Natto Is Traditionally Eaten
The traditional way to eat natto maximizes its appeal and minimizes texture discomfort:
- Preparation: Open the container and remove the two small sauce packets (typically soy sauce and mustard)
- Stirring: Use the included stick (or chopsticks) to stir vigorously. Mix the beans together, incorporating air and thoroughly combining them. This is crucial—stirring creates more stickiness (which seems counterintuitive) and distributes flavors evenly. The mixture becomes frothy and more homogeneous. Stir for 30-50 times.
- Seasoning: Add soy sauce and mustard to taste
- More Stirring: Stir again to incorporate seasoning
- Eating: Pour the mixture over warm rice in a bowl. The heat from the rice is important—natto tastes better warm, and the rice provides textural contrast to the slimy natto. Eat by mixing the natto and rice together, then taking spoonfuls
- Optional Additions: Some people add nori (seaweed), scallion, or raw egg to natto-over-rice
This preparation method—mixing with rice, serving warm, adding textural elements—creates a completely different eating experience than trying a spoonful of plain natto directly from the container.
Where to Eat Natto
Convenience Stores: Most convenience stores (7-Eleven, FamilyMart, Lawson) sell natto packages for ¥200-¥400. These are pre-packaged with sauce and mustard included. This is the cheapest, most accessible way to try natto. The quality varies but is generally decent.
Supermarkets: Traditional supermarkets often have natto sold in trays without packaging. Quality is usually better than convenience store versions. ¥300-¥600 depending on size and quality.
Natto Specialty Shops: Several cities have shops that specialize in natto, often making their own or sourcing exceptional quality. These are rare but worth seeking out if available in your destination.
Traditional Japanese Breakfast Restaurants: These serve natto as part of breakfast sets, typically with rice, miso soup, pickles, and nori. A breakfast set costs ¥1,000-¥1,500. Eating natto in this context—as part of a complete breakfast—provides a better introduction than trying it alone.
Izakaya and Casual Restaurants: Many serve natto as an appetizer or side dish. ¥500-¥900.
Natto Varieties and Quality Differences
Standard Natto: The typical variety made from large soybeans. This is most common and accessible.
Small Beans (Otowari Natto): Made from smaller soybeans, these have more surface area relative to size, creating different texture and potentially easier to eat.
Specialty Natto: Some producers make natto from heritage soybean varieties or using traditional methods. Quality and flavor vary significantly. Premium natto costs ¥1,000-¥2,000 per package.
Regional Natto: Different regions have slight variations—Mito (in Ibaraki Prefecture) is particularly famous for natto production, and Mito natto is considered superior by many. If visiting Ibaraki, seeking local natto is worthwhile.
Tips for Your First Natto Experience
Start Small: Don't buy multiple containers. Purchase one package and commit to trying it properly once rather than multiple failed attempts with lowered expectations.
Follow the Traditional Method: Use rice, warmth, soy sauce, mustard, and stirring as described above. Don't try plain natto.
Set Expectations: Acknowledge that the smell is strong and the texture is unfamiliar. Mentally prepare to accept these as characteristics rather than flaws.
Eat with Experienced Eaters: If possible, eat natto with Japanese friends or at a restaurant where locals are eating. Their enthusiasm and enjoyment can shift your perspective.
Try Multiple Times: Taste preferences shift over time. Many people who dislike natto initially grow to enjoy it after multiple exposures. The umami flavor often becomes increasingly appealing.
Don't Force It: If after sincere attempts you still dislike natto, that's fine. It's genuinely polarizing, and many Japanese people also can't eat it. There's no obligation to enjoy every food.
Natto in Modern Japanese Culture
Natto remains popular in Japan but consumption has declined slightly among younger generations. However, among health-conscious people and traditionalists, natto consumption is strong. Many Japanese swear by natto for its health benefits and its role as an economical, nutritious food.
Natto appears in Japanese memes and comedy as "the challenge food for foreigners"—a knowing reference to its polarizing nature. Many food documentaries and travel shows feature foreigners trying natto for the first time, often with hilariously disgusted reactions.
In modern Japanese cuisine, some chefs incorporate natto into unexpected dishes—natto pasta, natto sushi, even natto ice cream (usually as a joke). Traditional restaurants, however, maintain classic natto-over-rice preparations.
Natto Nutritional Profile
One serving (50 grams) of natto contains approximately:
- 100 calories
- 10 grams of protein
- 5 grams of fat
- 5 grams of carbohydrates
- Vitamin K2 (important for bone health and potentially cardiovascular health)
- Nattokinase (an enzyme under research for cardiovascular benefits)
- Probiotics (beneficial bacteria for digestive health)
- Soy isoflavones
From a nutritional standpoint, natto is dense with beneficial compounds relative to its caloric content.
Regional Natto Culture
Mito (Ibaraki Prefecture): The natto capital. Multiple restaurants specialize in natto, and various quality levels are available. A natto-focused meal costs ¥1,500-¥3,000. Visiting Mito for natto is worthwhile if you're interested in exploring the food deeply.
Tokyo: With its large population, Tokyo has numerous restaurants serving natto as part of traditional breakfast. Department store food halls have excellent natto selections.
Throughout Japan: Most cities have natto availability, though it's less prominent in southern regions like Kyushu and Okinawa.
The Philosophy of Natto
Natto represents something important in Japanese food culture—the embrace of fermented foods, the belief in transforming simple ingredients into something more complex through time and careful process, and the willingness to eat foods that are acquired tastes. It's humbling—a reminder that food preferences are cultural and that foods that seem strange from outside a culture often make perfect sense within it.
Trying natto authentically—preparing it properly, eating it with rice and warmth, and approaching it with genuine curiosity—can be transformative. You might discover a new favorite food, or you might confirm that natto isn't for you. Either way, the experience of stepping outside your culinary comfort zone and engaging with a food that millions of people love is valuable.
Conclusion
Natto is Japan's most challenging food—one that separates adventurous eaters from cautious ones, and even among adventurous eaters, creates passionate division. Yet it deserves respect and genuine attempts at understanding. It's nutritious, economical, and has been central to Japanese cuisine for centuries. Eaten properly—warm over rice, stirred thoroughly, seasoned appropriately—natto reveals complexity and satisfaction. Whether you become a natto enthusiast or decide it's not for you, trying it sincerely in Japan, where the culture and context make the experience meaningful, is worthwhile. At minimum, you'll understand better why millions of Japanese people wake up and eat natto for breakfast, and you'll have pushed your culinary boundaries in a way few tourists do.
Last updated: May 2025. Information verified for the current travel season.
