Note on Nukamiso. 



BY 



M. Inouye, Nogakush!. 



Nukamiso is rice-bran in a state of lactic fermentation, and 

 is used for softening certain vegetables, such as the fruit of the 

 egg-plant and the radish, which are rendered palatable and 

 easily digestible, when left in a large quantity of nukamiso for 

 about 24 hours. (l) 



Nukamiso is prepared by mixing rice-bran with about four 

 times its amount of hot water and adding 6-10 per cent of salt 

 to the mixture. A small quantity of old nukamiso is added 

 in order to give the fermentation an early start. Very 

 frequently also some fish broth is added, whereby the fer- 

 mentation is considerably enhanced. The mixture acquires 

 gradually a strong acid taste and peculiar smell, and has to be 

 stirred from time to time to avoid the growth of mould fungi on 

 the surface, which would no doubt use up the lactic acid and, 

 by thus rendering the mass gradually neutral, would allow of the 

 growth of putrefactive bacteria, which would spoil the product, 

 more especially if enough salt had not been added. Comparative 

 experiments with one per cent solution of peptone have shown 

 that if the quantity of sodium chloride sinks below 5 per cent, 

 putrefaction can easily set in, (2) while lactic fermentation of a 

 sugar-peptone-solution is not prevented by even 10 per cent 

 of sodium chloride, although it is much retarded. 



(1) The nukamiso is not eaten, but is carefully washed off from the articles that 

 have been treated with it. 



(2) An addition of 5 per cent sodium chloride to a peptone-solution will retard 

 the putrefaction to such a degree that after about two weeks the amount of ammonia 

 formed is only about J that of the control case without sodium chloride. This 

 amount of ammonia would be still less, if some lactic acid were present, as in ?iuka- 

 miso ; moreover, I may mention that, although an addition of even 8 o/ 0 of sodium 

 chloride to the diluted peptone-solution will not prevent bacterial growth, putrid 

 fermentation is very much retared, if not entirely stopped, by that addition, especi- 

 ally if 0.5 0/0 of lactic acid is still present. 



