Fermentation Delicatessen: Enjoying Fermented Foods

In the Hanshin Food Hall, famously known as “the kitchen of Kansai”, on the basement level of the Hanshin Department Store Umeda Main Store is a stylish deli that stands out with its array of colorful side dishes. The deli, operated by Marukome, specializes in prepared deli dishes with a fermentation theme. We visited Fermentation Delicatessen, which offers delicious foods that also support your health, where we spoke with Ohashi Kanako from the Delica Business Section of Marukome Co., Ltd.’s Marketing Department.

We want to bring fermentation closer to people with extraordinary, innovative dishes made with fermentation techniques

On the day of our visit, Fermentation Delicatessen had around 20 prepared dishes neatly arranged in its showcase at opening. The main dishes featured a balanced selection of meat and seafood prepared in various ways. The side dishes included three types of salads centered on fresh vegetables, plus familiar favorites like yakibitashi [lightly grilled vegetables steeped in a seasoned broth] with plenty of vegetables, namul [a Korean dish of seasoned vegetables], shredded carrot salad, and potato salad. Just taking in all the delicious-looking dishes got our hearts racing.

All the prepared dishes incorporated fermented foods, featuring exquisite combinations of fermented foods and other ingredients. Creative ideas are really on display here, as one would expect at a specialty deli.

“Fermentation Delicatessen is designed to be like a neighborhood kitchen where anyone can drop in for delicious, wholesome meals with a fermentation theme,” says Ohashi. “Using the fermentation techniques Marukome has developed since its founding, we offer a wide variety of prepared dishes — Japanese, Western, Chinese, and more — in order to make fermented foods feel more accessible to people.”

Left: Prepared dishes are generally sold by weight, though some are sold by piece or slice.
Right: Alongside staple items, seasonal specials and sweets are on display. The takeout bento box lunches are also popular.

The deli uses many kinds of fermented foods. Besides miso and raw salted koji malt, the deli incorporates an array of fermented products such as koji amazake [a sweet drink made from koji], sweet koji, and rice bran. Even the salted koji, often used at home to season fried chicken, surprises us with how many ways it is used.

“It’s true that there are a lot of entrenched associations, such as salted koji for marinades and miso for miso soup. Here, we go out of our way to suggest slightly different uses, like incorporating raw salted koji into dressings or using miso in sweets. We’d be delighted if prepared dishes from Fermentation Delicatessen inspire people to explore more ways to use fermented foods.”

Left: Fermentation Delicatessen opened in April 2022 as Marukome’s first prepared food outlet.
Right: The description cards indicate with icons which fermented foods are used in each dish.

We had been told that the deli was produced by Marukome, but the name Marukome was nowhere to be seen.

“That’s right. The Marukome name is strongly associated with miso, but we actually produce many other fermented foods besides miso. These include raw salted koji, raw soy sauce koji, and koji-derived fermented sweeteners like sweet koji and koji syrup, which can be used as sugar substitutes, as well as koji amazake and fermented rice bran. Our objective is to further popularize the deliciousness, depth, and fascinating aspects of Marukome products and fermented foods through Fermentation Delicatessen’s prepared dishes. To achieve this, the most important thing is to have customers genuinely feel ‘This is delicious!’ without necessarily displaying the Marukome corporate identity. As interest in fermented foods grows and more people want to make these dishes at home, opportunities to purchase our products will naturally develop. So, for us, conveying the deliciousness of the products is enough.”

Offering flavors and dishes customers never tire of, whenever they visit

All the prepared dishes look tempting and attractive, but which are the most popular?

“Our most popular item is the Kale and Quinoa Miso Cheese Salad. We use Ryotei no Aji Freeze-Dried Granulated Miso to make it. The double dose of fermented products, in the form of miso and cheese, masks the bitterness of the kale and radicchio, making them easier to eat. Some customers are drawn to the superfoods kale and quinoa, buy the salad, try it, get hooked on the taste, and become repeat purchasers.”

The Kale and Quinoa Miso Cheese Salad has a particularly large fan base. A salad mix that makes it easy to recreate at home has been commercialized. It’s available for purchase at Marukome’s online shop.

“The Nukazuke Potato Salad enjoys enduring popularity. It’s a mayonnaise-free potato salad made by pickling potatoes, cucumbers, and carrots in rice bran, then tossing them with a koji dressing featuring a whole-grain mustard-like flavor. The Salted Koji Chicken, which comes in seasonal variations, is eagerly anticipated by many customers each season. Some flavors that have appeared in the past include tomato miso, yuzu citrus and koji mustard, and lemon and koji honey ginger sauce.”

The Salted Koji Chicken is moist and tender thanks to the power of koji. Its substantial volume is perfect for a main dish, so its popularity is no surprise. It’s also a pleasure to encounter different flavors every time you visit the store.

Left: The Nukazuke Potato Salad is made with Plus Koji Fermented Nukadoko and Sanpi-Ryoron Koji Dressing. If you’d like to make this at home, check out our Instagram Reels.
Right: The salted koji chicken offering on the day of our visit was Salted Koji Chicken Roast with Sansho Pepper and Koji Bijin Miso. The refreshing aroma and rich miso taste make it a dish that pairs perfectly with rice.

“When developing these dishes, we prioritize two aspects of ‘never becoming boring’. The first is coming up with tastes that you never get sick of even if you have them every day. The second is creating dishes that customers never tire of whenever they visit the deli. For example, we offer time-limited variations of our staple items. We do a lot of experimenting and consciously make use of seasonal ingredients or flavorings that match the season.”

With so many delicious prepared dishes, many people find it hard to choose. For these people, Ohashi recommends the bento box lunches. The lunches are a great value, as they come packed with a main dish and a well-balanced selection of Fermentation Delicatessen’s popular sides. Because of its location in the basement food hall of the Hanshin Department Store Umeda Main Store, many customers pick up these lunches before going to watch baseball at the nearby Koshien Stadium.

Taking advantage of our opportunity, we bought two bento box lunches and sampled them on the rooftop garden. The salted koji chicken remained tender and juicy even when cold. The raw salted koji really brings out the umami of the chicken. The vegetable sides let you enjoy a little bit of several dishes, while also creating a colorful spread. With gentle flavors that aren’t overpowering, the lunches offer tastes you could truly enjoy day after day without getting tired of them.

Two different bento box lunches: on the left is the Salted Koji Chicken and Brown Rice Fermented Salad Bowl, and on the right is the Salted Koji Fried Chicken Fermented Bento Box. They are both accompanied by Rice Koji Milk, which is produced with rice koji fermentation techniques. The drink has a subtle sweetness with a familiar taste, making it a perfect match for a box lunch.

Check out the deli’s soy meat options and gluten-free sweets

The prepared food counters in Hanshin Department Store Umeda Main Store’s Hanshin Food Hall have a different theme each month, at which time they launch new items as their Top Recommended Items. July’s theme at the time of our visit was Chilled Flavors. Fermentation Delicatessen’s limited-time item for July was Fermented Nut Salad with Soy Meat and Aromatic Vegetables. The deli does offer several other soy meat-based dishes year-round.

Marukome launched the Daizu Labo brand and began commercializing soy meat in 2015, as a way to make delicious soybeans more accessible. With people becoming more health conscious, as well as rising concerns about future meat supply shortages, soy meat is being increasingly welcomed not just by vegans and vegetarians but also by general consumers.

“We’re in an era of diverse dietary styles, with people becoming more conscious about low-carb and gluten-free foods and about the protein content of their food,” says Ohashi. “Soy meat has a texture remarkably close to real meat, is high in protein, low in fat, and relatively low in calories. Plus, it’s rich in dietary fiber — it’s got it all. We’ve curated our deli offerings hoping to meet the demand for plant-based foods while also giving those who haven’t tried soy meat before a chance to discover how delicious it is.”

The theme of the monthly Top Recommended Item focuses on both ingredients and flavors. The theme for August is Hot & Spicy and for September, Fried Delights.

You’ll find confectionaries at Fermentation Delicatessen that are perfect when you want something sweet, but don’t want the guilt that usually comes with enjoying sweets.

“What we recommend is our gluten-free Koji Carrot Cake, which uses soybean flour. The frosting consists of soybean cream cheese and Koji Mitsu syrup, a fermented sweetener made with rice and rice koji. This cake is special because it doesn’t have the typical dry, crumbly texture of soy flour; rather, the cake is moist with a gentle sweetness. Many customers have posted photos of these cakes on social media, and we are seeing more and more repeat buyers. Another very popular sweet item is our Rice Bran Basque Cheesecake. This one has a sweet-salty flavor, making it very snackable with wine. Men frequently purchase this one.”

The Koji Carrot Cake contains raisins and walnuts. The Koji Mitsu syrup used to make the frosting is also available for purchase at the deli.

It’s really rewarding to see customers’ reactions and hear their feedback when they try new prepared dishes

Fermentation Delicatessen opened in 2022. Located a short walk from JR Osaka Station and the Hanshin/Hankyu Osaka-Umeda Station, the deli attracts customers of all ages. Repeat customers are on the rise, and Ohashi finds interacting with customers in-store to be very rewarding.

“It’s really gratifying to me to be present at the moment a regular customer who usually buys the same item every time decides to try a new flavor. When someone chooses to buy something they’ve never tried before, it means they trust our taste. It shows they believe every dish at our deli must be delicious.

“We also have customers who visit us every time they come to Osaka on business, saying ‘I wish I had a shop like this near me.’ Everyday conversations like these tell us we’re achieving our goal of being a neighborhood kitchen where customers can stop by anytime. These moments are what truly motivate our staff.

“We cannot live without food. Which is precisely why we want the food we eat every day to be delicious and nourishing. Drawing on Marukome’s expertise gained from years of working with Japanese fermented foods, we aim to continue sharing the deliciousness and potential of fermented foods with our customers.”

Ohashi also oversees the b!olala store in Fukuoka. Holding a registered dietitian qualification, she is involved in a wide range of activities from menu development and store operations to customer service.

Note that the products featured in this article may not be available at the deli.