First Attempt

So, after years of saying "I'm going to make natto at home" I finally got off my ass and gave it a try.......... With less than stellar results.

First I soaked the beans. For this time I chose average Canadian grown soy beans of a medium large size. I happen to like natto made from bigger beans but I understand that I am in the minority here.

Next I boiled my beans in a pressure cooker and sterilized by equipment. When I thought the beans were cooked enough I mixed them with the natto bacteria a little salt, sugar and boiled water and placed them in a baking dish in my oven with the light on and a utility light in there as well to try to keep the temperature at around 100 degrees Fahrenheit and let the bacteria work it's magic for the next 24 hours or so.

After (not so) patiently waiting for a day I turned out the oven lights and checked on my creation! Oh my, my first time oh what joy..... for a minute. I quickly realized my grave error..... my beans were hard!!!! Little stinky, sticky rocks. The kind you could chip a tooth on! In my zeal to create my own version of perfection, I had neglected to cook the soy beans long enough. I also realized that my oven temp. was way too high and the beans were dry as well as hard. Oh well I thought to myself, let's use this as a learning experience and try again..........