The benefits of soy have long been enjoyed among Asian communities for millennia. While the Western counterparts turned the legume into animal feed, families in the East have worked the ingredient into their everyday diets. But the history of where, and when, soy first made an appearance remains a modern-day mystery; there is little written evidence documenting the primitive usage of the bean. Early Chinese manuscripts found mentions of soybeans – decreed by the emperor as part of five ‘sacred’ grains – in 2850 BC, while others believed that the first users of soybeans were the early settlers along the Korean Peninsula during the Bronze Age.
No matter the origin story, an outsized appetite for the tiny bean has grown, and countries all around started embracing and consuming, soy. A food journal, History of Fermented Foods in Northeast Asia, penned by Chel-Ho Lee and Moonsil Lee Kim suggested that the popularity of the bean, and in particular its fermented variants, was first brought about by the rise of Buddhism in the region; the religious belief eschews meat consumption for a plant-based diet. The result: a flourishing of salted vegetables and soybean products – from natto and miso in Japan to tempeh in Indonesia.
The art of food preservation and fermentation was also widely believed to be catalysed by growing discoveries in primitive pottery culture. Archaeological findings saw that across cultures, specialised earthenwares were used to brew up different funky concoctions. Vessels known as onggi form the basis of all traditional Korean fermented bean jang, or sauce; and China holds the record for the earliest pottery production over 20,000 years ago, and famously birthed dou chi, or salted black beans that later evolved into the ubiquitous soy sauce.
Above all, fermented soy products were favoured among Asia communities for one pragmatic reason: their ability to extend the shelf life of ingredients. For many ancient households, storing food in pots and leaving them to ferment helped ensure that sustenance was available all year round, particularly so during dry spells and cold weather. That the preservation process aided the development of umami and enhanced flavours was a delicious bonus.
Fermentation and smell, described by those unfamiliar as pungent and rancid, however, are inextricably linked. The preservation process, where microorganisms such as mould break down carbohydrates, often creates funky tastes – and smells. In A Brief History of Fermentation by William Shurtleff and Akiko Aoyagi, they shared that fermented foods are perceived differently in Western and Asian cultures. They said: “In the West, mould-fermented foods are limited primarily to a number of cheeses characterised by their strong flavours and aromas: camembert, blue, brie, and related types … most Westerners still have a deep-seated prejudice against mouldy products, and they generally associate the word "mould" with food spoilage.”
But there seems to be changing stance towards fermented soy products. More are embracing the funk, buoyed in part by the growing trend of meat-free alternatives. Soy, time, and the influence of various cultures have given rise to a myriad of fermented soy products.
