"What is amazake after all? Liquor? Juice? How should I drink it?"
This time I will answer such a question.
Amazake is an increasing number of young people who drink it.
Some people drink it because of their beauty and health consciousness, while others like it because it is delicious.
However, even though amazake is labeled as "liquor," it is sold as a soft drink, and I think some people may be a little worried.
In this article "I'm worried about amazake" "I want to know about amazake" I will explain amazake in an easy-to-understand manner for those who said that!
"Sake" comes, but it's not liquor
Amazake is not liquor.
However, amazake is made from rice and jiuqu. Rice Jiuqu Amazake "" And "made from lees" Sake lees amazake Did you know that there are two types?
Rice-jiuqu amazake is non-alcoholic, but in fact, lees amazake contains a small amount of alcohol.
but, Alcohol content in commercial lees amazake is less than 1% Therefore, it is classified as "soft drink".
First of all, I will explain how to make and taste each of the two types of amazake!
What is the difference between rice koji amazake and sake lees amazake?
"I didn't know that there were two types of amazake! 』\
That's right.
In a word, there are two types of "Amazake", and each has a completely different manufacturing method, taste, and texture.
Rice Jiuqu Amazake, which is characterized by its natural sweetness derived from rice
Does not contain alcohol Therefore, the amazake that can be drunk from small children to pregnant women is rice-jiuqu amazake.
The only ingredients are "rice" and "rice koji".
Jiuqu is made by planting Jiuqu in rice.
Rice porridge is made from rice, cooled to around 60 ° C, then dried rice porridge is added, mixed, and kept warm to complete the rice porridge amazake.
Jiuqu's enzyme converts the starch contained in rice into glucose, so you can enjoy the natural sweetness without adding sugar.
Sake amazake containing a small amount of alcohol
Sake lees amazake is a thick liquid amazake that contains a little alcohol.
The ingredients are "sugar," "lees," and "water," and salt may be added.
Lees is the white solid that remains after squeezing sake from moromi (rice fermented by adding aspergillus and yeast), and is made by adding water or sugar to it and spreading it.
When purchasing a commercial product, check the label of raw materials or alcohol content.
If the raw material contains "lees" or is labeled as "alcohol less than 1%", it is lees amazake.
Since it contains a small amount of alcohol, it may be better to refrain from those who are weak or weak in alcohol, and small children.
What is the difference between rice jiuqu and sake lees?
Then, what is the difference in taste, texture, and aroma between rice koji amazake and sake lees amazake?
For the sake of clarity, I've put together a simple table below.
In terms of taste, as I mentioned earlier, there is a difference between the natural sweetness and the sweetness of sugar.
In terms of texture, rice-jiuqu amazake has crushed rice, while lees amazake has a thick texture.
In addition, rice koji amazake has a scent that is a mixture of the scent of jiuqu and the sweet scent.
In comparison, lees amazake uses sake pomace, so it has a slightly liquor-like aroma.
What is "Jiuqu" used for amazake?
What is Jiuqu? Steamed grains and legumes with mold (a fungus that does not generate toxins) called "Aspergillus" Is called.
Jiuqu, which is used in amazake, is made by growing Jiuqu on rice, and the one made from rice is sometimes referred to as "Koji".
Aspergillus releases various enzymes to grow and decomposes proteins and starch contained in foodstuffs to produce amino acids, which are umami ingredients, and glucose, which is a sweetening ingredient.
Be careful not to drink too much⁉ How to drink amazake?
So far, I have briefly explained about amazake.
Then, when actually drinking, which amazake should be taken and how much should be taken as a guide?
Here, I would like to tell you how to drink amazake effectively.
Choose the one that suits you and drink
As I have explained so far, there are two types of amazake, "rice koji amazake" and "lees amazake". Each has its own characteristics, so it's best to drink amazake that suits you. I think.
Those who are not good at alcohol, small children, pregnant women, etc. who should refrain from alcohol should drink rice koji amazake, and those who are not good at the unique scent of rice koji should drink sake lees amazake.
Each amazake has beauty and health benefits, so be sure to choose the one that suits you best.
Let's drink 100g at a time and 200g a day as a guide!
As a guide for the amount of amazake to drink, About 100g once, about 200g a day recommend.
It may be less than I had imagined.
But there is a reason for this.
This is because the main ingredient of amazake is "glucose".
Glucose is an energy that the brain needs to work, so it is a necessary nutrient for us to live, but since it is "sugar", we must be careful not to take too much.
Taking too much may cause obesity, so be careful not to drink too much and take about 200g a day as a guide.
in conclusion
How was it?
This time "What is amazake?" I talked about.
To summarize what I told you,
- There are two types of amazake: "rice koji amazake" and "lees amazake".
- Each amazake is different because it has different manufacturing methods and characteristics.
- "Jiuqu" used in rice koji amazake is rice with aspergillus.
It will be.
When purchasing amazake, we recommend that you refer to the article and choose the amazake that suits you.
Why don't you take this opportunity to start your amazake life and become beautiful from the inside of your body! ??